.44 
.N644 





PROCEEDINGS 



AT THE 



d$ Jllcetrag 0f JTogiil Citizens, 



ON 

UNIOI SQUARE, NEV-YORK, 

15th DAY OF JULY, 1862, 

UNDER THE AUSPICES OF 

THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF THE STATE OF NEW-YORK, THE UNION 

DEFENCE COMMITTEE OF THE CITIZENS OF NEW-YORK, THE 

COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW-YORK, 

AND OTHER COMMITTEES 



LOYAL CITIZENS. 

LETTERS AND SPEECHES. 

PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE COMMITTEE OF ARRANGEMENTS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF 

JOHN AUSTIN STEVENS, Jr., Secretary. 




NEW-YORK : 
ORGE F. NESBITT k CO., PRINTERS, 

CORNER OF PEARL AND PINE STS. 
1862. 



^^^r^^ 





Rnnk . iV^ A- 



PROCEEDINGS 



AT THE 



rp-^ 




im Xlci;li«0 0f '$m\ Cttiitiis, 



ON 

mim SQUARE, NEW-YORK, 

15th DAY OF JULY, 1862, 

UNDER THK AUSPICES OF 

THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF THE STATE OF NEW-YORK, THE UNION 

DEFENCE COMMITTEE OF THE CITIZENS OF NEW-YORK, THE 

COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW-YORK, 

AND OTHER COMMITTEES 

OF 

LOYAL CITIZENS. 

LETTERS AND SPEECHES. 

PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE COMMITTEE OF ARRANGEMENTS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF 

JOHN AUSTIN STEVENS, Jr., Secretary. 



N E W - Y R K : 

GEORGE F. NESBITT k CO., PRINTERS, 
cornee: of pearl and pine sts. 

1862. 






'61 



PRELIMINARY PROCEEDINGS. 



ORGANIZATION OF COMMITTEES. 



Chamber of Commerce of the State of New-York, [ 

New-York, July Zd, 1862. \ 

At a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, held this day, the 
President in the chair, the following Preamble and Resolutions 
were unanimously adopted : — 

On the 19th day of April, 1861, the Chamber of Commerce of the 
State of New- York declared its sentiments in regard to the duty 
of loyal citizens of the United States to sustain the Government 
in its efforts to suppress a wicked and injurious rebellion, then but 
recently commenced. 

In accordance with the sentiments at that time expressed, and 
in the discharge of the like obligations of duty to the country, this 
Chamber does hereby 

Resolve — 

First. That it will continue to sustain, by its influence with the 
commercial community and to the fullest extent of its means, the 
National Government in a vigorous and determined effort to main- 
tain the integrity of the Union, and effectually to put down 
rebellion. 

Second. That in the recent appeal made by the President to 
the loyalty of the country for additional militaiy forces, the Cham- 
ber recognizes the patriotism and energy which should insure con- 
fidence in his fidelity to the Constitution, and in his determination 
to preserve the National honor. 

Third. That this Chamber will cordially unite with other bodies 
of loyal citizens in any measures calculated to give efficiency to 
the military and naval power of the Government, and to preserve 
and maintain the character of this community for patriotism and 
loyal devotion to the Union. 



Further. That a Committee of thirteen members be appointed 
bj the chair to consider and recommend to the Chamber, such 
measures as they ma}' deem advisable, to give practical effect to 
this expression of the sentiments of the Chamber. 

The President named as such Committee : 

GEORGE OPDYKE, Chairman. 

JoHX A. Stevens, Charles H. Marshall, 

A. A. Low, S. D. Babcock, 

Prosper M. Wetmore, George W. Blunt, 

Denning Duer, Robt. B. Minturn, 

William E. Dodge, Jonathan Sturges, 

Christopher R. Robert, Royal Phelps. 

A true extract from the Records of the Chamber. 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

Secretary. 

A copy of the Preamble and Resolutions was, by direction of 
the President of the Chamber, engrossed and forwarded to the 
President of the United States. 

Chamber of Commerce of the State of New-York, 
New- York, July 5th, 1862. 

To the President of the United States : 

Sir, — I have the honor to present a copy of Preamble and Resolutions unani- 
mously adopted by this Chamber at their general meeting this day. 

The Chamber show the will to meet with cheerfulness all present sacrifices, 
and the determination to aid the Government to the extent of their ability in 
prompt and vigorous prosecution of the war, until the national authority is re- 
established and the integrity of the Union restored. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce. 

On the 5th July, the Committee of Thirteen, appointed by the 
Chamber, met and addressed invitations to the Union Defence 
Committee of the citizens of New- York and the Common Council 
of the city of New- York, inviting their co-operation. 

Chamber of Commerce Rooms, ) 
New- York, July 5tL 1862. \ 

To the Union Defence Committee of the Citizens of New-York: 

Gentlemen, — 1 have the honor to communicate the following resolution, 
unanimously passed this day by a Committee appointed on the part of the 
Chamber to take into consideration the present state of our national afiairs : 



Resolved, That a committee of five be appointed to meet a similar committee 
from the Union Defence Committee, and committees from other bodies of loyal 
citizens, to unite upon the proper measures to sustain the National (•'overnment 
in crushing out this rebellion, with power to call this committee together to re- 
ceive their report. 

Under this resolution the following gentlemen were appointed on the part of 
the Chamber of Commerce : 

Hon. George Opdyke, Clinin, Jonathan Sturges, 
C. R. Robert, Denning Duer, 

John A. Stevens. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

Secretary. 



Union Defence Committee of 'he Citizens of New-York,) 

New-York. July 8tli, 1862. \ 

Jo/in Austin Stevens, Jr., Esq., Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce: 

Sir, — I am instructed to acknowledge your communication of this day, invit- 
ing a deputation from this body to confer with a committee of the Chamber of 
Commerce in relation to the public affairs of the country. 

This committee will cheerfully unite with the Chamber in the furtherance of 
any measures calculated to promote the public welfare ; and I am accordingly 
instructed to transmit to you the followins; names composing a committee of 
conference : 

Messrs. Hamilton Fish, A. C. Richards, 

A. T. Stewart, R. A. Witthaus, 

R. M. Blatchford, Samuel Sloan, 
P. M. Wetmore. 

I am, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

PROSPER M. WETMORE. 

Secretary pro tern. 



Union Defence Committee, ) 
New- York, July I2th, 1862. \ 
Sir: 

Id accordance with the expressed desire of the Convention of Committees 
appointed to call a public meeting of the citizens of New-York, I am instructed 
to inform you that the action in question received the sanction of all the members 
of this committee present at the meeting of the 8th inst., viz. : 

Hamilton Fish, Chairman, R. VI. Blatchford, 

Simeon Draper, M. H. Grinnell, 

Samuel Sloan, R. H. McCurdy, 

Wm. E. Dod«e, R. a. Witthaus, 

Hon. Geo. Opdyke, W. F. Havemeyek, 

RoBT. T. Haws, A. C. Richards. 

Isaac Bell, P. M. Wetmore, 

I am,, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

PROSPER M. WE'I'MORE. 

Secretary pro tern. 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., Es(|., Secretary Joint Convention. 



PROCEEDINGS OF BOARD OF ALDERMEN. 

The following communication was received from His Honor the 
Major, transmitting a communication from the Chamber of Com- 
merce, relative to the state of our national affairs : — 

Mayor's Offic:e, New- York, ) 
July 1th, 1862. j 
To the Honorable the Common Council: 

Gentlemen, — The events of the hist fortnight appear to call for a renewed ex- 
pression of our devotion to our country, and of our unfaltering determination to 
sustain the Government in its efforts to suppress the rebellion. After an almost 
uninterrupted series of victories for half a year, we have at last met with two re- 
verses—one at Charleston and the other before Richmond — which, though inde- 
cisive and temporary, do yet disappoint our confident expectations, and tend to 
prolong the war, supposed by some to be well-nigh ended. Upon such a disap- 
pointment, it seems fitting that we, as the official organ of the most populous and 
opulent city of the Republic, should repeat the declaration of unwavering con- 
stancy, which neither victory nor defeat can change, and our unalterable 
resolution to stand by the Government in maintaining the supremacy of the 
Constitution and the integrity of the country, at all hazards, and at every neces- 
sary sacrifice of lil'e and treasure. 

In the presence of the great conflict in which the country is engaged, we will 
forget all past differences of party or opinion- for all party considerations sink 
into insignificance in the presence of danger to the Government itself: we will 
summon every loyal citizen to join us in supporting the Government, and to 
aid us by his services and counsel ; we will give a generous confidence to the 
President and all whom, in the exercise of his just authority, he thinks proper 
to place in positions under him ; and while we must exercise the privilege of 
freemen, to criticise pubHc men, and exact from them fidelity to their trusts, 
vigor and promptitude in action, and such a comprehensive and well-considered 
policy, as to adapt the means to the end— availing, for this purpose, of all 
the instrumentalities that the usages of civilized warfare will justify — we will 
declare to them that our lives and fortunes are at the service of our country, 
and that we ask only to be informed how much is needed, and to be assured 
that what we give shall be faithfully and wisely applied to that service. 

It is one of the uses of national reverses that they serve to winnow the dis- 
loyal from the loyal. Now is the time to know who is true and who is false. 
The country never needed the services of traitors, and now less than ever. But 
she does need the services of all her loyal children, that she may not only over- 
throw this gigantic but causeless rebellion against her authority but mny repel, 
with becoming spirit, the first approach to that foreign intervention in her 
affairs which is at times obscurely threatened, and which we cannot admit for 
one instant without national disgrace. Let us. then, seek out, discover, and 
bring to punishment every disloyal person ; and let us call on all the loyal to 
stand together, and to speak and act as one man. for the safety and honor of 
their country. If we had never had a victory ; if, from the beginning of the war 
till now, a series of uninterrupted disasters hiid fallen upon our armies, we could 
not even then have compromised with revolt, or submitted to dismemberment 
without the basest pusillanimity. But our arms have been, for the most part, 
victorious ; the area of the rebellion has been gradually contracted by the 
advances of the armies of the Union ; the great rivers of the West have been 
•opened ; all but four of the seaports on the whole coast, from Cape Henrv to 
the Rio Grande, have been retaken and restored to the Union. 'I'he Federal 
authority has been re-established over many fortresses and cities, where a year 
ago it was contemned, and we are gradually winning them all back by the irre- 
sistible force of our arms. Our country lias, therefore, no cause of discourace- 
mont, but every reason to hope, and every motive to persevere. 



Considering these things, I suggest respectfully to your Honorable Bodies, 
the propriety of passing resolutions, pledging the people of this Metropolis to the 
support of the Government in the prosecution of the war and the maintenance 
of tlie national honor ; and that you authorize your Joint Committee on National 
Affairs to unite with the Committee of the Cbanib(M- of Commerce, and other 
committees acting with them, in calling a public meeting of citizens of all parties, 
to express, without reference to any party question whatever, their undiminished 
confidence in the justice of our cause, their inflexible purpose to maintain it to the 
end, and to proffer to the Government all the aid it may need, to the extent of 
all our resources. 

Since writing the above, I have received the accompanying resolution of the 
Chamber of Commerce, on the same subject, with a request that it be transmitted 
to your Honorable Body. 

GEORGE OPDYKE, 

Mayor. 



Chamber op Commerce of the State op New-York, ) 
New-York, July 5th, 1862. f 

To the Honorable the Common Council of the City of New-York: 

I have the honor to communicate to your Honorable Body, the following 
resolution, passed unanimously this day, by a committee appointed on the part 
of the Chamber of Commerce, to take into consideration the state of national 
affairs : 

Resolved. That a committee of five be appointed, to meet a similar committee 
from the Union Defence Committee, and committees from other bodies of loyal 
citizens, to unite upon the proper measures to sustain the National Government, 
in crushing out this rebellion, with power to call this Committee together to re- 
ceive their report. 

Under this resolution, the following gentlemen were appointed on the part of 
the Chamber of Commerce : 

Hon. George Opdyke, Denning Duer, 

C. R. Robert, John A. Stevens, 

Jonathan Sturges. 

With respect, your obedient servant, 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

Secretary. 



Alderman Dayton moved that tlie communication from Lis 
Honor the Mayor be referred to the Joint Committee on National 
Affairs, and that the Committee on National Aifairs be authorized 
and directed to co-operate with the Committee of the Chamber of 
Commerce, in the manner recommended by his Honor the Mayor 
in his communication. 

The whole subject was referred to Committee on National Af- 
fairs. 



Same documents sent to Board of Councilmen, and thereupon 
Councilman Orton moved that the communication be received 
and referred to tlie Committee on National Affairs, with power to 
confer with any other committees relative to the state of the 
Union, if in their judgment advisable. 

Which was carried. 

The Joint committee on National Affairs appointed as a sub- 
committee to confer with the other committees the following : 

Councilman WM. ORTON, Chairman. 
Aid. Peter Mitchell, Councilman Wm. H. Gedney. 

" Henry Smith, Aid. Ira A. Allen. 

This committee attended, and chose Aid. Mitchell to represent 
them on the Committee on Resolutions. 



9 
MEETING OF CONVENTION OF COMMITTEES. 



The joint Committees of the Chamber of Commerce, the Union 
Defence Committee and the Common Council, met on Wednesday, 
the 9th of Jul}^ A Committee of live on the part of a body of 
citizens, who met at the Mayor's oflice, July 7th, consisting of — 

Judge JAMES W. WHITE, Chairman, 
Dr. Francis LiEBER, Geo.D. Piielfs, 

David Dudley Field, Isaac Sherman, 

appeared, and was requested, to take part in the proceedings ; as 
was also a Committee of five, on the part of a body of citizens 
who met at Fifth Avenue Hotel : 

KOBERT H. McCUEDY, Chairman, 
Charles Gould, Morris Ketchum, 

William Curtis No yes, Nathaniel Hayden. 

A sub-committee was appointed to draft and prepare an Address 
and a series of Eesolutions, to be submitted for ratification to a 
public meeting, to be called at an early day. 

An Address and Resolutions were submitted on the 10th of Jul}^, 
and unanimously adopted. 

The Committee of Thirteen appointed by the Chamber of Com- 
merce, met on the same day. and unanimously ratified the action 
of their sub-committee. 

The Chamber of Commerce met on the same day, to receive the 
report of the Committee of Thirteen, which was unanimously 
accepted, and the Committee continued, with power to carry out 
the objects proposed. 

A true abstract of the proceedings of the Chamber of Commerce 

and of joint Convention. 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

Scrrdorij of Chainhrr of Commerce nnd of Joint. Conreniiioii. 
•9 



10 

INVITATION TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. 

In accordance with a resolution of the Committee of Arrange- 
ments, a sub-committee consisting of Hon. George Opdyke, J. W. 
White, Samuel Sloan, Denning Duer, and R. H. McCurd}', was ap- 
pointed to visit Washington, and to request the President of the 
United States to be present at the meeting. Two of tlie Committee 
being imexpectedly prevented by other pressing engagements from 
fulfilling the commission, F. S. Winston, though not a member of 
the Committee, was subsequently added. A copy of the Address 
and Resolutions was handsomely engrossed and placed in the hands 
of the Chairman, for delivery to the President ; and the following- 
letter was also addressed, to serve as the credentials of the Com- 
mittee. 

Rooms of the Chamber ok Commekck ok the State of New-Yokk, | 

New-York, Jidii im, 1862. j" 
To the President of the United States: 

Sir, — I have the honor to inform you that at a Convention, held this day, of 
Committees severally appointed by the Chamljer of Commerce of the State of 
New-York, the Union Defence Committee, the Common Council of the city, and 
other bodies of loyal citizens, it was unanimously 

Resolved, To hold a public meeting of the citizens of New- York, in favor of 
supporting the government in the prosecution of the war, and the suppression of 
the rebellion ; to express, without reference to any party question whatever, their 
undiminished confidence in the justice of our cause, and their inflexible purpose to 
maintain it to the (Mid, and to profi'er to the Government all the aid it may need, 
to the extent of all their resources. 

A Committee of Arrangements was appointed, to take all measures to render 
the meeting as effective as the occasion for it demands, by whose direction, and 
in whose behalf, Messrs. J. W. AVhite, R. H. ]\[cCurdy, and F. S. Winston, 
visit the capital to earnestly invite the presence of the President of the United 
States at the proposed meeting, believing that such course will arouse the enthu- 
sia.sm of this city, of this State, and of the whole country, in this imminent crisis 
of the national destiny. 

By order of the Committee of Arrangements, 

George Opdyke, Henry Smith, 

Denning Duer, George D. Phelps, 

Jonathan Stubges, J. W. White, 

Samuel Sloan, Charles Gould, 

P. M. Wetmore, Robert H. McCubdy. 
Peter Mitchell, 

A true extract from the Minutes. 

Respectfully, your most obedient servant, 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., 
Secretary of Convent ion, and of Committee of Arrangements. 



To the President : 



11 

Washington, J ah/ 12lh, 1862. 



Sir,— The undersigned have been appointed l)y a Convention of Conniiittees, 
from the Common Council, the Chamber of ( \)nnnerce, tlie Union Defence Com- 
mittee, and other loyal bodies in the city of New-York, to proceed to tliis city 
and present to you the invitation of the Convention, to attend a mass meeting of 
tlie citizens of New-York, to be convened on Tuesday, 15th instant, for the 
purpose of dechiring tlieir continued inflexible determination to support the 
Government at all hazards, and in every measure necessary for the suppression 
of the existing rebellion, "and, to that end, to proffer to the Government all the 
aid in their power, to the extent of all their resources." 

Presenting to you, sir, this invitation, which we have been commissioned to 
deliver, we beg leave respectfully to add, that we have been charged by the Con- 
vention to say, that, in their judgment, nothing could be more gratifying to the 
people of New-York, or would tend more to invigorate the patriotism which ani- 
mates every loyal heart, than to meet their Chief Magistrate thus in General 
Council in this momentous crisis of our national destiny. 

The Convention are aware that the act to which they thus invite the President 
of the United States — to attend a mass meeting of citizens assembled to consider 
important national questions — is one not in accordance with any previous usage 
or precedent ; but when they remember that the occasion is one without a pre- 
cedent in the past, and which they trust in God will be without anything like it 
in the future — a struggle with a rebellion which, in the history of the world, has 
no parallel, for its causelessness, its magnitude, and its monstrous wickedness as 
a crime against the whole human race, the Convention hope that you may be able 
to lay aside for a day other important public duties, and meet your loyal fellow- 
citizens at the time and in the manner suggested. 

We are, sir, with the greatest respect and consideration, 

ITour obedient servants, 

James W. White, 

Robert H. McCurdy, )- Committee. 

Frederick S. Winston, 

To Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States. 



REPLY OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. 

Executive Mansion, ) 
Washington, July lith, 1862. f 

Messrs. James W. White, Robert H. McCurdy, and F. H. Winston, Committee: 

Gentlemen,— Your letter conveying to me the invitation of several loyal and 
patriotic bodies in New- York to attend a mass meeting in that city, on Tuesday, 
the ir)th inst., is received. While it would be very agreeable to me to thus meet 
the friends of the country, I am sure I could add nothing to the purpose or the 
wisdom with which they will perform their duty ; and the near adjournment of 
Congress makes it indispensable for me to remain here. Thanking you and those 
you represent for this invitation, and the kind terms in which you have commu- 
nicated it, 

I remain, your obedient servant, 

A. LINCOLN. 



12 

INA'ITATION TO CORPORATIONS. ASSOCIATIONS AND SO- 
CIETIES TO ATTEND THE MEETING OP LOYAL CITIZENS. 

New-York, July llth, 1862. 
Sir: 

At a Couvontion of ('ommittees, severally appointed by the Common Council 
of this City; by the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New- York ; by the 
Cnion Defence Committee ; and by bodies of Loyal Citizens of this city, it was 
resolved to hold, on Tuesday, the Inth instant, a Mass Meeting of all parties 
who are in favor of supporting the Government in the prosecution of the war 
and suppressing the rebellion : and to express, without reference to any party 
question whatever, their undiminished confidence in the justice of the cause, and 
their iuflexible determination to sustain it ; and to that end to proffer to the Go- 
vernment their aid to the extent of all their resources. ' 

In accordance with this purpose, the undersigned were appointed by the Con- 
vention a Committee to invite the attendance of all Associations, Corporations, 
and Societies. 

In performance of this duty, we request that you will issue a call to the mem- 
bers of your Association, and convene them on the afternoon of 'I'uesday, to 
proceed to the Scjuare, where accommodations will be provided, and places on 
the Stands be reserved for your officers. 

Jamks W. White, "1 

Geo. Opdyke, j 

Samuel Sloan, I o j ^ /-. 

Prosper M. Wetmore, I ^'^''^ Committee. 

Denxixg Duer, I 

Charles Gould, J 

John Austin Stevens, Jr., Secretm-y of Convention. 



13 
CALL FOR THE MEETING OF LOYAL CITIZENS, 



The citizens of New- York, of all parties, who are for supporting 
the Government in the prosecution of the war and the suppression 
of the rebellion, are requested to meet on Union Square, on Tues- 
day afternoon next, 15th inst, at 4 o'clock, to express, without 
reference to any party question whatever, their undiminished con- 
fidence in the justice of our cause, and their inflexible purpose to 
maintain it to the end, and to proffer to the Government all the aid 
it ma^' need to the extent of all their resources. 

New- York, July lO/A, 18G2. 

Committee of the Cliamber of Commerce. 

GEORGE OPDYKE, Chairman, JOHN A. STEVENS, 

CHARLES H. M.IRSHALL, A. A. LOW, 

S. D. BABCOCK, P. M. WETMORE, 

G. W. BLUNT, DENNING DUER. 

ROBERT B. MINTURN, WILLIAM E DODGE, 

JONATHAN STURGES, C. R. ROBERT, 
ROYAL PHELPS. 

Committee of the Union Defence Committee. 

HAMILTON FISH, Chairman, SIMEON DRAPER. 

ROBER'l' T. HAWS, R. M. BLATCHFORD, 

SAMUEL SLOAN, ALEX. T. STEWART, 

WILLIAM E. DODGE, R, A. WITTHAUS, 

MOSES H. GRINNELL, A. C!. RICHARDS, 

ISAAC BELL, WILLIAM F. HAVEMEYER. 

Committee on National A fairs of the Common Council of New-York. 

WILLIAM ORTON, Chairman. HENRY SMITH, 

PETER MITCHELL, IRA A. ALLEN, 

WILLIAM H. GEDNEY, TERENCE FARLEY, 

CHARLES J. CHIPP. MORGAN JONES, 

JOHN IIOGAN, ALEX. H. KEECH. 

A Committee of Citizens who met at the 3fai/or\i Office. 

JAMES W. WHITE, Chairman. FRANCIS LIEBER. 

DAVID DUDLEY FIELD, GEORGE D. PHELPS, 

ISAAC SHERMAN. 

Committee of Citizens who met at Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

ROBT. H. McCURDY, Chairman, CHARLES GOULD, 
WILLIAM CURTIS NOYES, MORRIS KETCHUM. 

NATHANIEL HAYDEN. 

John Austin Stevens, ,Tr., Secretary. 



14 

REQUEST TO CITIZENS TO CLOSE PLACES OF 
BUSINESS. 



The loyal citizens of every class and profession are respectfully 
and earnestly invited to attend the Grand Mass Meeting, to be 
held on Tuesday next, 15tli inst, at four o'clock, on Union 
Square. 

It is recommended that all places of business be closed at three 
o'clock, in order that those who desire to show their loyalt}^ to the 
Government may be present. 

By order of the Committee of Arrangements, 

GEORGE OPDYKE, 

Chairman. 
John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

Secretary. 



The Committee of Arrangements, together with speakers and 
invited guests, met at the Everett House, to receive their several 
badges, and at precisely four o'clock, the procession was formed, and, 
preceded by the band and headed by the Mayor, moved toward 
the designated stands, amid salvos of artillery and accompanied by 
thousands of citizens. 



OFFICERS. 

STAND No. 1. 

Under charge of Committee of Arrangements, 
JONATHAN STURGES, SAMUEL SLOAN 

John Austin Stevens, Jr. 

President. 

Hon. GEORGE OPDYKE, 3Iaijor of (he citij. 



Vice-Presidents. 



John T. Henry, 
John J. Phelps, 
a. lockwood, 
Stephen Cambreleng, 
Elijah F. Purdy, 
Robert 'J'. Haws, 
Edwards Pierrepont, 
Hiram Barney, 
Horace Greeley, 
RuFUS F. Andrews, 

A. C. KiNGSLAND, 

James Boorman, 
David Dudley Field, 
Samuel R. Betts, 
Nehemiah Knight, 
Wm. B. Shipman, 
Cornelius Yanderbilt, 
Edward Learned, 
Simeon Draper, 
Charles P. Daly, 
Abram Wakeman, 
Charles H. Russell, 
Henry E. Davies, 
Peter S. Titus, 
W. V. Brady, 
S. B. Chittenden, 
Charles Butler, 
John C. Hamilton, 
Robert Murray, 
Paul Spofford, 
George W. Brown, 
Charles Burkhalter, 
Greene C Bronson, 
Sydney Mason, 
Joseph Walker, 
James Whiting, 



Daniel F. Tiemann, 
Morris Franklin, 
Chas. Yates, 
Chas. W. Sandford, 
Charles Lamson, 
Charles J. Chipp, 
William Watt, 

A. Davidson, 
Henry A. Heiser, 
Charles H. Macy, 

B. Westermann, 
Fred. Willman, 
n. roseman 
Bern HARD Cohen, 
Henry Bruggman, 
Joseph Lawrence, 
George 'J\ Elliott, 
George F. Thomae, 
Samuel Wetmore, 
Wm. G. Lambert, 
Edwin Hoyt, 
William Oothout, 
Oliver S. Strong, 
Isaac Sherman, 
Jeremiah Burns, 
Andrew Carrigan, 
James A. Hamilton, 
George Greer, 
Richard M. Hoe, 
Fredi^^ick H. Wolcott, 
W.^LDKN Pell, 

Teunis Quick, 
Hyman Morange, 
George B. Butler, 
J as. W. Beekman, 
Eli White, 



16 



John Baii.kv, 
J. M. Maksu. 
('iiARi.Ks Nelson', 
John J. Bkadlky, 
A\'ashin(;ton Smith, 
AVm. H. A.nthon, 
David Belden, 
Amos Robbins, 
C. Y. Wkmple, 
John K. Bkady, 
Joiix J Cisco, 
E. 1)ei-afiei,d Smith, 
Gkorgk Dkxison, 
John P. Cuosby, 
Nathan Chandler, 
.). 8. bosworth, 
Charles G. Cornell, 
James iMoncrief, 
Henry Brewster, 
Georck Starr, 
S. S. Wyckoff, 
James Brooks, 
George Bliss, 
Edward S. Jaffray, 
Thomas Lawrence, 
Henry Hilton, 
Clarence A. Seward, 
Georok F Nesbitt, 
George P. Putnam, 
Erastus C. Benedict, 
Thomas Stevenson, 
Morgan Jones, 
William F. Havemeyer, 
Nathaniel Hayden, 
Joseph Hoxie, 
Eleazar Parmly, 
Ira a. Allen, 
Geo. F. Talman, 
Ben.t. F. Manierre, 
C. C. Pinckney, 
Richard Busteed, 
James Kelly, 
Charles S. Spencer, 
Levi Apgar, 
William C. Wetmore, 
Alex. H. Keech, 

H. N. AViLLHELM, 

R. Weil Van Genesback. 

A. Wind.mixler, 
Frederick Kchne, 
I). Lichtenstein, 
M. Levin, 
AxDRfs Whilman, 
John ILvyward, 

B. VV. Osborne, 
Daniel Slate, 
Daniel Wells, 
P. Pfeiffer, 



William W. Todd, 
J. PiEitREPONT Morgan, 
C. H. Marshall, Jr., 
Henry Vandewater, 
M. D. Gale, 
John Hayward, 

C. H. Sand, 

R. Vonder Heydt, 
N. Wheeler, 
J. B. Cornell, 
Charles Steinway, 
Ernest Predt, 
Joseph Balestier, 
Rudolph Dulon, 
Otto Ernst, 
David Miller, 
M. S. Dunham, 
Max Schaffer, 
Charles 'J'aylor, 
Hexry Seaman, 
J. Penniman, 
Latham Parker, 
Natii. VVorley, 
Enoch Chamberlain, 
Wm. H. Webb, 
Henry S. Smith, 
Jambs Horn, 
Philip Hamilton, 
Warren Ward, 

D. A. Wood, 
Wade B. Worrall, 
John H. Williams, 
Frederick Reichfuss, 
Eugene S. Ballin, 
John Watson, 
Benjamin Floyd, 
Julius Brill, 
William A. Kobbe, 
Charles Schaffner, 
Theodore J. Glaubensklee, 
Leopold Bierwith, 
Sigismund Kauffman, 
Edward Byrnes, 

Henry A. Casseleer, 
Louis Naumann, 
William Aufermann, 
John C. Brant, 
Lsaac G. Ogden, 
Oliver Holden, 
Elias Howe, Jr., 
James K. Pell. 
Nath'l W. Burtis, 

A. MiCHELBACKER, 

Philip Frankenheimer, 
A. Menzesheimer, 
Charles Chjdius, 
William Scharfenber(}, 
William Tellinghause, 



i 



n 



John Brooks, 
John E. (jtayitt, 
F. E. Wkujngton, 
Skth B. Hunt, 
FiJANK E. Howe, 
Richard Berry, 
James Gordon Bennett, 
Ezra Nye. 



Isaac Dayton, 
Ar.EXANDER Hamilton, 
Joun Hogan, 
Robert Bavard, 
Samuel Hotaling, 
J. M. Olesen, 
SiGiSMUND Waterman, 
William C. Prime, 



Secretaries. 



John Austin Stevens, Jr. 
John M. White, 
Frederick Sturges, 
Wm. S. Oi'dyke, 
Edward A. Wetmore, 
Theodore Roosevelt, 
Brockholst Cutting, 
Francis A. Stout, 
Edward King, 
W1U.IAM F. Cary, Jr., 
Jaaies W. Underhill, 
Petkr Marik, 
Charles G. Clark, 
Alexander Becker, 
James E. Mauran, 
Cruger Oakley, 
William J. '1'odd, 
AVashington Murray, 
J. Howard Wainwright, 
G. Norman Lieber, 
Murray' Hoffman, 
George McC. Miller, 
Henry Winthrop, 
Geo. F. Betts, 
Wm. F. Smith, 



Sidney Webster, 

R. Fulton (jRary, 

Lewis Carr, 

Joseph H. Choate, 

N. W. Howell, 

James Couper Lord, 

Stuyvesant LeRoy, 

Ethan Allen, 

Robert Morris Vandenheuvel, 

John McClave, 

Oscar Schmidt, 

John H. White, 

Charles H. Tyler, 

Samuel W. Tubes, 

Joseph Howard, Jr., 

Theodore Tilton, 

John J. White, 

Wm. H. Everett, 

Wm. H. Peet. 

Jas. H. Frothingham, 

Chas. E. Stevens, 

Clinton Rice, 

David Rowland, 

Floyd Smith, 

B. H. Howard. 



PROGRAMME OF PROCEEDINGS. 



STAND Xo. 1 



Salutes of Artillery, by the Anthox Light Battery, and 
by the Workmen emploj-ed by Henry Brewster & Co. 

1. Grand March by Mendelssohn, by Hehnsranller's Grand Band. 

2. JoNATifAN Sturges will call the meeting to order, read the 

Call for the Meeting, and conduct to the Chair, Hon. 
GEORGE OPDYKE, Mayor of the City. 

3. Denning Duer will read the list of Vice-Presidents and Sec- 

retaires. 

4. Hon. George Opdyke, Chairman, will address the meeting. 

5. David Dudley Field will read the Address adopted by the 

Convention of Committees. 

6. John Austin Stevens, Jr., will read the Eesolutions adopted 

by the Convention of Committees. 

7. Song on our Country and our Flag, by Francis Lieber ; sung 

by Grand Chorus with band accompaniment. 

8. Charles King will address the meeting. 

9. William Eoss Wallace will read an Ode. composed for the 

occasion — "Keep Step to the Music of Union." 

10. Music — Star-Spangled Banner. 

11. Hiram Walbridge will address the meeting. 

12. Music — Hail Columl)ia. 

13. Senator Spinola will address the meeting. 

14. Music—Hail to the Chief 



19 

Mr. Jonathan Stueges called the meeting to order, read the 
call of the meeting, and conducted to the chair Hon. George 
Opdyke, Maj'or of tlie city, amid the clieers of the people. 

In the absence of Mr. Denning Duer, John Austin Stevens, 
Jr., read the list of Yice-Presidents and Secretaries, which was 
ado])ted. 

SPEECH OF THE HON. GEORGE OPDYKE. 

Fellow-Citizens — We have assembled for a high anil lioly pur- 
pose. We come to renew our vows at the altar of patriotism ; and at 
what place so fitting as in the presence of a monument erected to the 
memory of Washington 'i [Cheers.] We come to reaffirm our earnest 
devotion to our country ; to pledge our lives and all that we possess in 
defence of the Constitution and Union which our fathers bequeathed to 
us, and to declare our unalterable detefmination to defend them to the 
last, not merely against the assaults of traitors, but if need be against 
a world in arms. [Cheers.] Come what may, whether disaster or suc- 
cess, we are determined to " fight on, and fight ever," until a glorious 
and enduring triumph shall crown our eftbrts. [Cheers.] 

We are here, too, to denounce treason and to disown political fellow- 
ship with all who sympathize with it. We have no toleration for those 
who, without provocation, have drenched our country in blood, in a 
fiendish attempt to overthrow a Government at once the mildest and 
most beneficent that human wisdom ever devised. Plistory records no 
blacker crime against society. lu a contest with such a foe there can be 
no middle or neutral groimd. All who are not earnestly opposed to 
these enemies of their country and of the human race, must be regarded 
as participators in their guilt ; all who apologize for their crime must 
share in the infamy that awaits them. Mor are there any grounds of 
compromise with such an enemy. Unconditional submission to the 
Constitution and laws they have contemned, is the only basis of recon- 
ciliation that honor or safety will permit us to ofter them. [Cheers.] 

We are here to stimulate and encourage the President, and all others 
charged with the duty of suppressing this infamous rebellion ; to declare 
to the Administration our confidence in its honesty, ability and single- 
ness of purpose ; to bid it be of good cheer, for the people, regardless of 
all party affinities, have resolved that the Union must and shall be pre- 
served, [loud cheers ;] and that to this end, and the speedy suppression 
of the rebellion, they are. prepared to stand as one man in support of the 
Administration iu every advancing step it may take in earnestness 
of etfort, and in the employment of every means justified by the usages 
of wai\ [Cheers ] 

But, above all, we are here to rekindle the half-slumbering patriotism 
of our countrymen, and to urge them to respond with alacrity to the call 
of the Government for additional volunteers. A bitter and relentless foe 
is striking at its vitals, and appealing to the enemies of free government 
everywhere to aid in the unholy work. Their efforts will fail utterly and 
hopelessly. But to make that failure quick, sure, and overwhelming, let 



20 

there be a general uprising and arming throiigliout the loyal States ; and 
let this be followed l)y a prompt t'orwaixl movement of the armies of the 
Union, so strong and irresistible th-it tlie armed traitors will be quickly 
driven to choose between flight and unconditional submission. [Enthu- 
siastic cheering.] 

D. D. Field, being called upon by the Chair, read the following 

ADDRESS, 

Adopted and RECOMNrEUDED by the Convention of Committees. 

The war in which the United States are enga2;ed is not a war 
of conquest, but purely of defence. We are lighting for that 
which w^e received from our fathers: for the Union, which Avas 
freely entered into by all the parties to it ; for the Constitution, 
which is older than this generation, which was made, in part, by 
the rebel States, and which every rebel leader has oftentimes 
sworn to support. \Ye did not resist till our forbearance was 
imputed to pusillanimity ; we did not strike till we had been 
struck ; and when w^e took np arms, we sought only to retake that 
which had been taken from us by force,- or surrendered by an 
imbecile or traitorous President and Cabinet. 

The Rebellion had no cause or pretext w^hich was even plausible. 
Misgovernment by the Federal power was not even pretended, 
nor any just apprehension of misgovernment, for, though a Presi- 
dent had been chosen whose opinions were hostile to the extension 
of Slavery, the other de|)artments of the Government were so 
constituted that no legislation hostile to the South could have 
been perfected. The Eebels revolted, therefore, against a Gov- 
ernment which themselves or their fathers had, of their free choice, 
created for them, whose powers the}' had generally wielded, and 
whose offices they had for the greater part filled. 

What this rebellion w^as for is declared by the Constitution 
w^hich the rebels immediatel}^ adopted for themselves, and to 
which they invited the adhesion of the loyal States. That instru- 
ment may be regarded as their manifesto. It is for the most part 
a copy of the Constitution of the United States, with these two 
important additions — the perpetual servitude of the African race, 
and the inalienable right of each State to secede from the rest 
at will. Slavery and secession are the two corner-stones of the 



21 

rebel constitution, the cliU'ereiices between tliat and our own, and, 
of course, the onl}' causes and ol)jeets of the rebellion. 

Whoever, therefore, eitlier in this country, or in Europe, sym- 
pathizes with the rebels, or abets them, must justify the taking up of 
arms and filling the land with distress and slaughter, for the 
establishment of the perpetual right of slaNer}'. and the ])erpetual 
right of secession. The bare statement of the proposition, so far 
as slavery is concerned, should seem to be a sulhcient argument. 
In this age of the world, under the influence of our Christian 
civiHzation, it seems incredible that any set of men should (hxre 
to proclaim perpetual human servitude as a fundamental article of 
their social compact, or that any other man should be found 
on the face of the world to justify or even to tolerate them. In 
respect to the assumed right of secession, the argument is short 
and conclusive. Our Constitution established a Government and 
not a league ; that was its purpose ; the aim of its founders to 
make it a Government indissoluble and immortal, was as clearlv 
expressed in the language of the instrument, and of contempora- 
neous writings, as it was possible to express it. 

That man must be most ignorant of American histoiy and law, 
who does not know that the idea of a league or partnership is 
wholly foreign to our constitutional system. The union between 
England and Scotland is as mucli a league or partnership; as the 
union between ISTew-York and Virginia, and when Englishmen 
talk of the right of Virginia to self-government, let them ask 
themselves if they think Scotland has a right to secede from Eng- 
land at will. 

So much for the legal right — now for tlie political necessity. 
The secession of Louisiana and Florida from Pennsylvania and 
Ohio can no more be admitted, considered as a question of policy 
alone, than could the secession of Wales from England, or Bur- 
gundy from Fi-ance : nay, more, it would be possible for France to 
exist as a powerful empire, without a foot of the old domain of the 
Burgundian princes ; and England might be powerful and re- 
spected, though the Welsh in their mountains still maintained their 
independence. But such is the shape of this continent, and the 
net-work of waters which flow thro uuh the Delta of tlie Missis- 



90 



sippi into the Gulf of Mexico, tliat one part of the great valley 
cannot secede from the other. Providence has written its eternal 
decree upon the rivers and mountains of our continent, that the 
north-western and the south-western States shall be forever joined. 

But if it were possible to be otherwise — if several independent 
communities, without any national tie, could exist side by side in 
the great basin of our continent — they would be rivals, and from 
rivals would become enemies, warring with each other, seeking 
foreign alliances, obstructing each others prosperity, and assailing 
each other's power. The great experiment of Republican Govern- 
ment would have failed ; an experiment depending for its success 
upon the possiljility of uniting the independent action of separate 
States in respect to the greater number of the functions of govern- 
ment, with the action of a national government upon all matters 
of common concern. 

If, as we believe, the fate of Republican Government in America 
is to determine whether a great country can be governed by any 
other than the monarchical form, with its concomitants of privileged 
classes, and standing armaments ; and, of course, whether this 
country of oui's is to continue to be the asylum for the poor and the 
op])ressed of all countries : there can be no greater question presented 
to any people than that now presented to us ; none in which the 
millions of this continent, and of Europe, are more deeply con- 
cerned. If such a sacrifice were necessary, the thirty millions who 
now inhabit these States could do nothing so useful or sublime as 
to give themselves and all tliat they have, that they might leave 
this broad land under one free, indissoluble, republican govern- 
ment, opening wide its arms to the people of all lands, and promis- 
ing happy homes to hundreds of millions for scores of ages. 

We are persuaded that there has never been a struggle between 
authority and rebellion, whose issues involved more of good or ill 
to the human race. We are fighting not for ourselves alone, but 
for our fellow-men, and I'or the millions who are to come after us. 
These are scenes in the great war of opinion, which began before 
the century opened, and which will be ended onl}- when it shall 
be decided whether government is for the few or the manv. 

We do not war with monarchical governments, or monarchical 



23 

])rinciples. T\icy may be the best for some countries. The He- 
publican form of government is tlie one we prefer for ourselves, 
and for that, in its purity, and its strength, we are offering up our 
substance, and pouring out our blood like water. We are contend- 
ing for that scheme of government for which Washington and the 
rest of the Fathers took up arms; for the integrity of our countrv, 
for our national existence, for the Christian civilization of cnir land, 
for our commerce, our arts, our schools ; for all those earthly things 
which we have been taught most to cherish and respect. 

Such being the magnitude of the stake in this contest, can it be 
wondered at, that we feel that all that we have, and all that we can do, 
should be given to our country in this its great hour of trial. If 
there be a man among us who does not feel thus, he should 
leave us. We cannot endure the thought of a traitor in the 
midst of us. For ourselves, we are wulling to make every 
sacrifice necessary to secure the triumph of the Government. It 
can have all the resources of twenty millions of people. All we 
ask of it is, that it shall use them quickly, vigorously and wisely. 
Let us have no disunited counsels, no uncertain policy, no insuf- 
ficient armaments, no paltering with rebellion. The crisis is most 
serious and imminent. The nation is not in a mood for trifling. 
It believes that the surest means of suppressing the rebellion ai'e 
the best. It complains only of delays, vacillation, weakness. Ig 
wishes the strength of the nation to be collected, and when 
collected, used, so that not a vestige of revolt remain. We know 
that we have the men and the means ; we only demand of the 
Government that it do what it is bound to do, use them with 
singleness of purpose, with well-considered pJan, under the lead 
of the wisest counsel and the most skillful command. 

This rebellion is a matter between ourselves and the rebels. 
No person other than an American has anything to do with it. If 
another intrudes into it, we must regard and treat him as an 
enemy. And if any foreign Government, forgetting its own 
duties, attempts to interfere in our affairs, the attempt must be 
repelled, as we are sure it will be repelled, with that firmness and 
spirit which become the American people and their representa- 
tives. If there be anything about which we are all agreed, it is 



24 

the wisdom of our traditional policy, that we will not interfere in 
the alihirs of other nations, nor allow their interfei'ence in ours. 
To the maintenance of this policy the nation is devoted, and the 
Government can count on the unanimous support of our people. 

Forasmuch, then, as the actual rebellion and the possibility of 
foreign intervention make it necessary that the whole loyal people 
of this country should be banded together as one man, for the 
defence of all they hold most dear, we here pledge ourselves to 
each other, to Congress, and to the President, that, with all our 
resources, we will support the Government in the prosecution of 
this war, with the utmost possible vigor, till the rebellion is utter- 
Iv overcome, and its leaders brought to merited punishment. 
The Address was adopted by acclamation. 
John Austin Stevens, Jr., next read the following 
RESOLUTIONS, 
Adoptkd and recommended bt the Convention of Committees. 
"Whereas, at a meeting of the citizens of New- York, convened 
on the 20th of April, 1861, it was resolved to sujjport the Gov- 
ernment in the prosecution of the war then opened by the rebels, 
W'ith all the means in our power; and whereas, nothing has since 
occurred to change our opmions, or our determination then ex- 
pressed, but everything to confirm them ; and whereas, after a 
series of successes to the Federal arms, interrupted only by a few 
temporary reverses, the casualties of war have reduced the effective 
strength of the regiments in the field, so that recruits are 
needed to fill them up ; and whereas, the occupation of the places 
repossessed by our army requires an additional force, and the 
President has called for three hundred thousand men, and for these 
reasons another meeting of citizens has been called, and is now 
assembled, it is thereupon 

Resolved, That we reafTirm all the resolutions of the meeting of April, 1861, 
hereby declaring, that every event that has since occurred lias served to 
strengthen the convictions, then held, of the wickedness of this rebellion, and the 
duty of all loyal citizens to suppress it with the strong hand, and at all hazards. 

Resolved, That this war is waged on the part of the loyal for the overthrow 
only of the disloyal ; that we seek not to enforce any claims or to establish any 
privileges beyond those given us by the Constitution of our fathers ; and our only 



25 

aim and purpose have been, and are now, to maintain the supremacy of that 
Constitution, over every foot of soil wliere it ever bore sway, with not a line in- 
terpohited, or a hne erased. 

Rp'iolml, 'I'hat we are for the union of the States, tlie intef^rity of the 
Country, anil tlie maintenance of tliis Government, without any condition or 
quahfication whatever ; and we will stand by them and uphold them, under all 
circumstances, and at every necessary sacrifice of life or treasure. 

Resolved, That while we recognize, and will sedulously maintain, the rights 
of each State under the Constitution, we abhor and repudiate the doctrine— fatal 
to national uoity, and so prolific of treason in the army and navy, and among 
the people— that allegiance is due to the State, and not to the United States ; 
holding it as a cardinal maxim, that to the United States, as a collective Govern- 
ment, is due the primary allegiance of all our people ; and that any State or con- 
federation of States, which attempts to divert it. by force or otherwise, is guilty 
of the greatest of crimes against humanity and our National Union. 

Resolved. That we urge upon the Government the exercise of its utmost 
skill and vigor, in the prosecution of this war, unity of design, comprehensiveness 
of plan, a uniform policy and the stringent use of all the means within its 
reach, consistent with the usages of civilized warfare. 

Resolved. That we acknowledge but two divisions of the people of the United 
States in this crisis ; those who are loyal to its constitution and every inch of its 
soil, and are ready to make every sacrifice for the integrity of the Union, and the 
maintenance of civil liberty within it, and those who openly or covertly endeavor 
to sever our country, or to yield to the insolent demand of its enemies ; that we 
fraternize with the former, and detest the latter ; and that, forgetting all former 
party names and distinctions, we call upon all patriotic citizens to rally for one 
undivided country, one flag, one destiny. 

Resolved, That the Government of the United States, and its people, with an 
occasional exception among the reckless inhabitants where this rebellion was fos- 
tered, have wisely and studiously avoided all interference with the concerns of 
other nations, asking, and usually enjoying, a like non-interference with their 
own, and that such is, and should continue to be, its policy ; that the intimations 
of a contemplated departure from this sound rule of conduct on the part of some 
of the nations of Europe, by an intervention in our present struagle, is as unjust 
to them as it would be to us, and to the great principles for which we are con- 
tending; but we assure them, with a solemnity of conviction which admits of no 
distrust or fear, and from a knowledge of, and a firm reliance upon the spirit and 
fortitude of twenty millions of freemen, that any attempt thus to intervene, will 
meet a resistance unparalleled in its force, unconquerable in its persistence, and 
fatal to those whom it is intended to aid ; and that it will tend only to strengthen 
and elevate the Kepublic. 

Resolved, That the skill, bravery and endurance exhibited by our army and 
navy, have elicited our admiration and gratitude ; that we behold in these quali- 
ties the assurances of sure and speedy success to our arms, and of rout and dis- 
comfiture to the rebels ; that we urge the Government to aid and strengthen 
them by all the means in its power, and carefully to provide for sick, wounded 
and disabled soldiers and their families ; to prosecute the war with increased 
vigor-and energy, until the rebellion is utterly crushed, the integrity of the Union 
in all its borders restored, and every rebel reduced to submission, or driven from 
the land ; and that to accomplish these ends, we pledge to our rulers, our faith, 
our fortunes, and our lives. 



26 

liesoliTil, That we api)rove of the administration of the President of the 
United States, and of the measures recommended and sanctioned by him for the 
prosecution of tlie war, the suppression of the rebellion, and tlie welfare of the 
country ; that we sanction as wise and expedient the call for three hundred 
thousand more troops, and earnestly exliort our countrymen to rally to the 
standard of the Union, and bear it aloft until it shall fioat in peace and security, 
and be everywhere respected and honored. 

Rcsofved, That a general armament is required by every consideration of policy 
and safety, and the Government should lose no time in filling up our armies 
and putting the whole sea-coast in a state (tf complete defence. 

■ Re-<olr('(J. That it be recommended to the Common Council of the city ot 
New-York to otfcr a liounty of twenty-five dollars to every resident of the city, 
who shall within thirty days enlist into any regiment now in the field. 

Whi^'li were nnaniniously adopted. 

The next performance was the singing of " Our Country and 
her Flag," composed by Feancis Lieber. For this purpose 
thousands of copies of the song were scattered among the crowd, 
being thrown from the main stand. The effect of this song, by a 
full chorus of manly voices, and with the accompaniment of the 
band, was very striking. The air is that of a glorious old anthem. 

A SONG 
ON OUR COUNTRY AND HER FLAG. 

BY FRANCIS LIEBER. 

Sung at the Meeting of Loijnl Citizens, Union Square, New-York, Juli/ 15, 1882. 
Tune — Gandeamns igitur. 

We do not hate our enemy — 

May (irod deal gently with us all. 
We love our land ; we fight her foe ; 

We hate his cause, and that must fall. 

Our country is a goodly land ; 

We'll keep her alway whole and hale ; 
We'll love her, live for her or die ; 

To fall for her is not to fail. 

Our Flag! The Red shall mean the blood 

We gladly pledge ; and let the White 
Mean parity and solemn truth, 

Unsullied justice, sacred right. 

Its Blue, the sea we love to plow, 

'I'hat laves the heaven-united land, 
Between the Old and Older World, 

From strand, o'er mount and stream, to strand. 



27 

Tlie l>lue reflects the crowding stars. 

Bright Uniou-emblein of the free ; 
Come, all of ye, and let it wave — 

That floating piece of poetry. 

Our fatliers came and planted fields, 

And manly Law. and schools and truth ; 

They planteil 8elf-Rule, which we'll guard, 
By word and sword, in age. in youlh. 

Broad Freedom came along with them 

On History's ever -widening wings. 
Our blessing this, our task and toil ; 

For " arduous are all noble things." 

Let Kmp'ror never rule this laud. 

Nor fitful Crowd, nor senseless Pride. 
Our Master is our self-made Law ; 

To Jiirn we 1)0W, and none beside. 

Then sing and shout for our fi-ee land, 

For glorious Frf.eland's victoi'y ; 
Pray that in turmoil and in peace 

Freei.and our laud may ever be ; 

That faithful we be found, and strong. 

When History builds as corals build, 
Or when she rears her granite walls — 

Her moles with crimson mortar filled. 

The Chairman introduced Hon. Charles King, who was wel- 
comed Avith enthusiastic applause. 

SPEECH OF THE HON. CHAS. KING, LL. D. 

Fellow-Citizens, — You see before you a man for many years with- 
drawn by the nature of his pursuits from all political affairs, but yet with 
a heart that beats as Avarmly toward the interest, and welfare, and honor of 
the country, as the youngest in this vast concourse. [Cheers.] I come 
before you, therefore, to speak in behalf of a cause common to every 
American heart. We are here to-day to co-operate in putting down the 
most wicked, wanton, causeless rebellion that ever offended the justice of 
God or stained the annals of man. [Applause.] We have been called 
upon by those in authority to send forth new regiments to the field, and 
recruits to the old regiments whom the fortune of war has decimated, 
and we come together now to pledge ourselves, that so far as each one 
of us is concerned, those men shall not be wanting, and those regiments 
shall be filled up. Can there be a more sacred cause than this i Can 
anything appeal more strongly to our interests, our feelings, our honor, 
our patriotism, than this? Can we submit to the shame and degrada- 
tion of permitting our sons and our brothers who have gone forth at 
their country's call, to stand exposed and unaided, to be cut down and 
decimated by the enemy, while we are calmly carrying on our daily avo- 



28 

cations at home ? [Cries of " No, No."] Surely not ; it cannot be ! 
[Cries of " iSever ! Never!"] Let us resolve here, once for all, that we 
will support our brothers in the field— that we will put everything at 
hazard to conquer the Rebellion and re-establish the Union. [Cheers.] 
We have heretofore lacked in earnestness of purpose in the conduct of 
the war. "We have dealt too mildly with those whom but a little while 
mro we regarded as our friends. Ihey are no longer friends, but deadly 
enemies, "xhey make war in earnest. They omit no means of strength- 
ening their hands and weakening ours. Ihey fight with no remem- 
brance that we were once brothers. Why, then, should we remember 
it ? They fight us like incarnate fiends ; let us, at least, meet them as our 
deadliest "foes. [Applause.] Let us now go forth and make the war as 
fierce and bloody as it is possible for a civilized nation to make it. No 
moderation is shown to us ; let us show none to them. We are far more 
])0werful in numbers, and better prepared than our enemies. We have 
heretofore acted too much on the defensive ; let us now act on the offen- 
sive. [Cheers.] Let us henceforth strike rapid and constant blows — 
blows that shall tell. Let us no longer hear that the Army of th- Poto- 
mac is " safe." Safe ! Great God ! The army should be triumphant. 
[Loud applause.] We have no criticism to make. I only speak com- 
mon-sense when I say that war is a fierce game ; that they only prevail 
who wage it in earnest. War cannot be waged in silken gloves. When 
we send forth our armies, it must be understood that they go to battle. 

Gentlemen, I speak to you as a citizen of New-York, older than any one 
that I look upon here, quite as much interested in everything that concerns 
the city and the country as any of you. Indeed, I have done almost every- 
thing that a man of my age can do to give success to the war. I have sent 
sons and grandsons to it, and I am ready, if necessary, to go myself. [Loud 
cheers.] And I promise you that neither of those sons will ever dishonor 
the name he bears or the education he received. [Cheers.] They are 
false friends and pernicious counselors who, in so great a cause as this, 
would interpose side issues, and would seek to advance mean and misera- 
ble personal or party aims and ambitions, by sowing the seeds of discord 
and jealousy among our public men, whether in civil or military life. Let 
all such discussion — all intermediate questions or discussion, which of 
necessity nmst be subordinate to the great and vital question of our Na- 
tional existence, which is now in the debate of arms — be postponed till 
tlie battle is won. llien there will be a great nation — calm in conscious 
strength, to judge and to determine all political questions. JVow, let there 
be only a nation of soldiers, resolved upon trampling treason in the dust, 
and eager and earnest for aggressive war. Aggressive, I repeat, in every 
form that the laws of war permit. Now our armies in the field are made 
the special guardians for the benefit of rebel women and children — of the 
property which the husbands and fathers have abandoned in order to join 
the rebel army — and upon many a bloody field our wounded and dying- 
have been obliged to ]»ut up with such wayside fare and nourishment as 
the chance of battle left for them, while hard by, rebel houses, and rebel 
gardens, and rebel granaries, abounding in comforts which might have 
saved life, and certainly would have mitigated sufi'ering, are "sacredly 
guarded by our troops for the benefit of the rebel families. This may be 
magnanimous, but it is not war. I would liave all this changed. [Cheers.] 



29 

I am for the AVcar in its fiercest form— always and in all things, however, 
havino- regard to our own character and superior civilization. [Applause.] 
Our antagonists claim that they are the mostt'r i-ace, and, as such, entitled 
to rule the land and give law to the baser sort, whom, as by one general 
term of reproach, tl ey stigmatize as Yankee. This claim of superiority, 
indeed, was announced in a recent article of one of the leading newspa- 
pers in Richmond, as among the determining causes of this rebellion. We 
of the North, it was said, confident in our numbers and wealth, seemed 
to forget that we were an inferior race, and to be disposed to throw off 
the yoke of the chivalry, and set up for ourselves ; and thence the neces- 
sity, it was argued, that the master race should assert its supremacy, and 
bring us back to wonted submissiveneso. The Yankee must, be made t« 
take" off his hat Avhen in the presence of a Southern gentleman ! Perhaps 
so ! But before that lesson is learned, a good many Southern heads will 
fall. Why, in every element that constitutes true manhood— in physical 
power, in educated mind, in religious instruction, in habits of self-com- 
mand, in the dignity of bread-winning industry, in the knowledge of his 
own rights, and in respect for the rights of others — in all that constitutes 
a man and a citizen — the Northern race is far, very far, superior to the 
Southern i-ace. [Cheers.] With this moral and physical superiority, how 
can it be otherwise than that, admitting equal courage on both sides, (and 
that is a generous concession to the South,) with our great preponder- 
ance of numbers, we must, when once fairly aroused, etiectually subdue 
them ? [Cheers ] 

We are to listen to no talk of compromise, of negotiation, and, least of 
all, of foreign mediation. Compromise of what ? Our right to exist as a 
nation ? for that is the whole question. Negotiation with whom ? Rebels 
in arms, traitors that have struck at the bosom of our common mother !^ 
And who among us would listen for an instant to mediation on the part of 
either France or England ? [Loud cheers, and cries of " No one !"] Under 
what pretence of rig-lit shall either of those nations, or both together, ven- 
ture to interfere inour domestic quarrel ? It is an offensive assum])tion 
of European superiority which we will not brook. We are a people of 
ourselves, and by ourselves — competent to manage our own affairs, without 
the aid or counsel of others — owing allegiance to God — but none to any 
earthly powers — and thoroughly resolved to submit to no dictation or 
intervention from any such powers. 

No, friends, this is no time for parley, for negotiation, for half-way 
measures of any sort. The people are far ahead of the Government. 
They are in earnest, and will not be paltered with ; they mean to put 
down the rebellion, and to punish the traitors with the most condign 
punishment. They have a policy, whoever else may lack one. They 
mean war, in earnest, and they mean that war deals with men only as 
friends and as enemies. [Applause;] It has no cognizance of political 
questions, of social institutions ; it deals plainly and directly with men, 
and the only question it asks of them, without regarding race or color, 
is, " Are you for us or against us ?" If for us, come and help ; if against 
us, we shall know how to deal with you. This is war, according to com- 
mon-sense and universal usage. A general in the field is bound to suc- 
ceed, and in order to that to use all lawful means conducive to success. 
He may take the life — none deny that — of the enemy. Shall he, then. 



30 

hesitate about taking his property Avhenever and wherever it can be 
useful to Ills own force ? [Cheers.] 

He maj' seize his crops, his cattle, and whi' not his slaves ? What 
rififht has a general in the field to expose our sons and our brothers to 
the horrors of unequal war, when thousands stand ready to help him if 
he will only say the word ? A general in the field knows nothing of 
slavery — that is a political and social question, with which it is none of 
his business to deal. He has to do only with the means of successfully 
prosecuting war, and wherever these means are to be found he must use them. 
This is so plain, that but for the prejudice of color none would hesitate 
about it ; and yet it is not conceivable that the existence, possibly, of this 
great Continental Republic, the lives of our sons and brothers, should 
depend upon a question of complexion. If the issue be between the pre- 
servation of the Union and the preservation of slavery, who shall hesi- 
tate ? It may, indeed, be — who shall say that it is not ? — within the in- 
scrutable purposes of Prondence that, Avhereas all this great disaster and 
crime arises from slavery and the disappointed, mad ambition of slave- 
holding leaders, the result of this dire conflict shall be the total extinc- 
tion of the great evil which has thus culminated in the greater crime of 
rebellion ? 

But of that I am not here to speak. All I urge is, that in the war to 
the death we use all the means which, according to all the usage of 
civilized war, we are entitled to use ; and that while our adversaries stop 
at no expedients to strengthen their hands, we shall not weaken ours by 
half-way, halting, mean and miserable hesitations. 

See to it, you my friends; let us all, individually and collectively, see 
to it that henceforth the lightning's flash shall tell of assault, of battle, 
of victorjr — of the enemy overthrown and subdued — of our old and 
honored flag restored in all its amplitude to every contested point 
throughout the land — of treason vanquished, and of the Union reaflSrmed 
and consolidated. Men of New-York, this you can greatly help to do. 
Fail not, then, as you value your peace on earth, your hopes of Heaven. 
[Prolonged applause ] 

After music b}- the band, Wm. Boss Wallace spoke, with 

thrilling aud dramatic effect, an ode prepared by him for the 

occasion. The following is the 

OI>E 

BV WILLIAM ROSS WALLACE. 

Keep step witii the music of Union, 

Tlie music our ancestors sung. 
When States, like a juhilant chorus, 

To hoautiful sisterliood sprung ! 
1 thus shall their great Constitution. 

'J'hat guards all the honus of the land. 
A mountain of freedom and justice. 

Kor millions eternally stand. 

North and Sout/i. East and West, all loifuiiiiKj: 

UxE Banner alone o'er the sod, 
Onic voice from America sicellmg 

In worship of Libert if s God! 



dI 

Keep step with tlie iimsic of Union, 

AV'lmt jiTandeur its Hair lias unrolled — 
For the loyal, a star-lighted Heaven, 

For traitors, a storm in each t'uld ! 
The glorious shade of Mount Vernon 

Still points to each patriot's grave, 
Still cries — " O'er the long mighty ages 

That Eagle of Lexington wave." 

North and South, East and West, tS'c. 

Keep step with the music of Union, 

'Ihe forests have sunk at the sound. 
The pioneer's brows been with triumph 

And Labor's fjroad opulence crowned ; 
Oh ! yet must all giant rude forces 

Of Nature be chained to our cars — - 
All mountains, lakes, rivers and oceans 

Crouch under the Stripes and the Stars. 

North and South, East and IVest, ^x. 

Keep step with the music of Union, 

Thus still shall we nourish the light 
Our fathers lit for the chained nations 

'I'hat darkle in Tyranny's night ! 
The blood of the whole world is with us, 

O'er ocean by Tyranny hurled. 
And they who would dare to insult us 

Shall sink with the wrath of the world. 

North and South, East and West, ^-c. 

Keep step with the music of Union, 
All traitors sliall fall at our march. 

But patriots bask in the blessing- 
Flashed down from yon heavenly arch ! 

Then hurrah for the Past with its glory ! 
For the strong, earnest Present, hurrah ! 

And a cheer for the starry browed Future 
With Freedom, and Virtue, and Law. 

North and South, East and West all unfurlino; 

One Banner alone o'er the sod. 
One voice from America su'elling 

In uvrship of Liberty's God .' 

SPEECH OF GEN. HIRAM WALBRIDGE. 

Gen. Walbridge was then introduced, by liis Honor the Mayor; 

who observed, that he would present to them their distinguished 

fellow-citizen, who as early as April, 1861, was in favor of calling, 

at once, six hundred thousand men to suppress the rebellion. 

Gen. Walbridge said : — 

Mr. Mayor, Friends and Fellow-Citizens : 

Fourteen months ago, from this very platform, the city of New- York, 
in the presence of a quarter of a million of loyal citizens, declared that 
she would not sit tamely by and behold a wicked, reckless, malignant 



iiiinoritv consuniiiiate the overthrow and ruin of the only representative 
constitutional Government on earth. When she tixed this determination, 
and announced her will, eleven rebellious States had attempted to sever 
their counectioii with the Federal Government ; had torn from the forts, 
arsenals, magazines and harbors within their limits the banner of the con- 
stitutional Union. This reckless, rampant treason, though long threat- 
ened, took the civilized world by surprise ; and, as the conspirators by 
thousands poured their murderous hail of shot and shell upon that thirsty, 
half-famished garrison at Fort Sumter, with its seventy exhausted but 
loyal men, they little realized that throughout the whole Christian world 
they were calling silently into exercise forces wholly beyond human 
control ; for that man must be an atheist, or have no soul, who does not 
realize, that since that first event God himself has been manifest in the 
moral and political phenomena which this great, loyal nation now pre- 
sents, and statesmen, and philosophers, and generals, will begin to reason 
right and act right, when they realize this great truth. The establishment 
of free institutions on this continent toward ameliorating the condition of 
the human race, was second to the inauguration of the Christian religion, 
and their dismemberment and overthrow is reserved only to Jehovah 
himself. 

Fellow-citizens, when last we met here, on the occasion to which I 
have referred, bold, rank, audacious treason pervaded almost every 
department of the Federal service. Army, navy, embassadors to foreign 
courts, collectors of customs, postmasters, the very defences at AVash- 
ington, limited as they were, could not then be relied upon. The nation 
trembled for the satety of the national capital ; the personal safety of 
the President was endangered even in the Executive mansion. Consterna 
tion and despair briefly ruled the hour. How stands the matter now ? 
Ihe ( apital is secured ; the rebels are trembling for Charleston, Savannah, 
and their entire coast, while we have New Orleans and Nashville. 
Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri, then on the verge of 
rebellion, are secured ; Virginia, then completely in the grasp of the 
rebels, has become loyal in the greater portion of her territorial extent. 
Over eight hundred thousand troops have been called into the field, 
armed, equipped, and provided, equal to any army ever before called into 
service ; a navy, like Pallas, from the brain of Jove, seems to have 
sprung at once into complete existence ; three thousand miles of coast 
have been blockaded, and a landing has been effected upon the soil of 
that pestiferous State, which first instigated and finally produced this 
wicked rebellion. I would that we could here have first made our 
terrible visitation of the power and resources of the Federal Government 
in quelling the treason, firmly believing, had that been done, the border 
States would never have hesitated in their allegiance. Twenty millions 
of people are on the one side, backed by the consciousness they are 
contending for the integrity and maintenance of the Government from 
which they have achieved greatness and commanded respect throughout 
the worhl. Eight millions of rebels oppose them. The grounds of 
the contest are clearly defined — treason, revolt and anarchy are on 
the one side ; liberty, security and prosperity on the other. Great 
as is the disparity in wealth and numbers, the traitors thus far have 
maintained the unequal contest. But the end is not yet. An additional 



83 

300,000 troops liave been called into requisition by our exigencies. This 
patriotic action of the Government must be sustained, traitors at home 
must be punished, spies and informers must be annihilated, the Union 
must be preserved, and condign punishment afterward inflicted upon all 
who have taken this period in our history to fatten upon the nusfortunes 
of the Kepublic. A broad and beneficent statesmanship must be adopted, 
and the policy of the Government must be borne upon our victorious 
standards as they advance into the rebel territory. That policy should 
be broad, national and statesmanlike ; but it should be so rapid, so 
powerful, so wise, and so energetic, that the national life will survive, and 
the authority of the Constitution in the rebellious States be recognized, if 
to accomplish it every existing institution, order, monopoly, or privilege, 
should be swept before our advancing hosts. Rights should be recognized, 
privileges discarded, and the authority of the United States floating again 
over its former territorial limits, its flag everywhere emblazoned in 
characters of living light — " The Union, it must and shall be preserved." 
It is to be seriously deplored that at this juncture our fears are appealed 
to lest the proportions of this contest shall be largely augmented by 
some eflbrts at intervention from foreign powers, which may result in 
collision in our present domestic dissensions. From the first dawning of 
our domestic dissensions the governing class in England have desired, 
not their repression, but their increase, and have actively sympathized 
with these internal traitors to dismember our Government. They thus 
hope to render the people of North America as impotent to oppose their 
political and commercial domination as similar domestic contentions 
have already reduced the people of the South American Republics. 
Hence at tlie very commencement of the rebellion the English ministry 
made haste to recognize the rebels as belligerents, and to place them on 
the same level as the Government against which they had rebelled. 
Intervene to make peace ! Intervention will deluge the earth with blood. 
This country cannot be dismembered but by subjugation, amid seas of 
blood and oceans of flame. Never. England and France combined, 
with what is left of the rebels, cannot subjugate and dismember the United 
States. In such an atrocious attempt every lover of liberty and fair 
dealing in Europe will be our friend ; every hater of British tyranny 
will be our friend ; every hater of Napoleon will be our friend ; 
the Pope would rejoice to see the end of a dynasty which seeks 
his degradation ; Venice would find herself a part of Italy, and 
Austria would find a compensation in exemption from future dangers on 
the Rhine, and in a division with Russia of the "■ sick man's estate." 
Intervene for humanity ! Transparent falsehood ! The United States 
will neither be subjugated or dismembered while the loyal American 
people remain true to their Revolutionary origin. But as becomes wise 
and practical men, we should closely examine the means of assault and 
the means of defence if this burden should be forced upon us ; and here 
again we shall witness abundant opportunity for confidence and hope. It 
is fair to assume, should intervention ever come, the two Western powers 
of France and England will act in unison, as they did in the Crimean 
war, and as they have recently co-operated with Spain by intervening 
with the internal affairs of Mexico. These two powers combined possess 
a large army. If undisturbed, in from eight to nine months, by gigantic 

5 



34 

efforts and at vast cost, they might ferry across the Atlantic from 240,- 
000 to 275,000 soldiers, with all their armaments and supplies. This 
■would, however, be doing far more than they were able to do in the 
Crimean war, though largely aided by American steam transport ships. 
At no time in the year can they in one voyage readily transport 100,000 
soldiers, and the immense amount of necessary arms and supplies. Even 
if able to shelter their soldiers till the last detachment arrives, and all 
move together, some nine or ten months after hostilities should arise they 
would stand in the presence of disciplined troops twice as numerous as 
themselves — in the presence of troops who have fought far more battles 
against resolute troops than themselves — a few thousand French troops 
alone excepted. 

The American troops — regiment for regiment — six months from to- 
day, will be as well drilled, m better condition and practice, will have 
seen more active service and as many battles, and will be better armed, 
than the regiments to which they will stand opposed, and will be more 
than twice as numerous. Their next means of assault consists in vessels 
of war — numerous and powerful — and, in addition, the English have 
constructed canals from the St. Lawrence into the great chain of Ameri- 
can lakes, to enable them to convey gun-boats into these waters. We 
have no such connection with the ocean. They can transport their gun- 
boats among our commercial vessels, and in front of our inteiior cities, 
along a lake coast of more than two thousand miles, unopposed. We 
have nothing at this time — absolutely nothing — with which to oppose 
them on these great inland seas. But, per contra, we have to-day more 
armored vessels — genuine iron-clad — than both France and England. 
That much good has come out of this evil rebellion. In a few weeks — - 
not months — we shall be able to teach the English, if they demand it of 
us, a new version of the naval lessons of 1812. Six or eight of our 
armored vessels can readily destroy the entire unarmored fleet of Eng- 
land. We shall soon have afloat iron-clad vessels, armed with carefully 
tested ordnance, carrying elongated projectiles with " punch points," of 
four hundred and eighty pounds, fully competent — first, to resist the con- 
centrated fire of the Warrior, aided by the La Gloire, Aapoleon's largest 
iron-clad ship ; and second, by the use of shot alone to sink both of them, 
should they come within its range. We now have on hand the tested 
ordnance competent to speedily destroy any vessel yet armored by any 
nation. Our iron-clads are the most numerous at this time, and cannot 
be exceeded prior to January or February next. The English troops are 
dispersed all over the Avorld to guard isolated colonies. Her available 
troops cannot be massed to an amount of eighty thousand ; and one 
hundred and fifty thousand, if she had them, would not be troublesome . 
to a powerful nation, possessing from 800,000 to 1,000,000 of troops 
already called to the field ; ami the French army, once shut on shipboard, 
even if convoyed by the whole English and French fleet, could not in an 
ordinarily fair fight escape destruction. A single conflict between an 
English or a French iron-clad and one of our far more heavily armed 
iron-clads will settle that question. The result will be so decisive as to 
admit of no mistake, if there is any virtue in ordnance throwing projec- 
tiles four times heavier than any approved gun with which any English 
or French vessel is now armed. Let us examine our means of defence. 
Of course, before going into battle, a soldier puts on his armor ; when a 



35 

man leaves home he locks the doors of his house. So a nation goint^ to 
war v.ith a naval enemy, will, at an early day, carefully lock the nioutlis of 
all those valuable harbors, inlets, sounds, and rivers, which have narrow 
entrances, and thus lessen the home duties of the fleet, as well as furnish 
a place of refuge when disabled by storms, or pressed by superior force. 
The mode of obstructing entrances to harbors, so as to eftectually secure 
them, and yet allow of a passage of a friendly ship with but little hind- 
rance, is pointed out with great clearness by the Board of Engineers in a 
report made to the Secretary of War in 1840. The obstru(;tion can be 
created in the entrance to a harbor like that of IVew-York in probably 
two or three days. The wdiole British navy could not force a passage 
through the entrance, without first removing the obstruction ; and the ob- 
struction could be removed by an enemy only after the silencing of the 
forts under the command of whose guns it is placed. Having taken steps 
to carefully secure the most important entrance by temporary obstruc- 
tions and by heavily armed forts, let us promptly provide an interior 
water communication between our chief cities, parallel v^ith our Atlantic 
coast, and having numerous communications with it at protected points. 
This has been frequently recommended by the Board of Engineers as a 
work of vast military importance. In April last, the Military Committee 
of Congress, in an able report, demonstrated how this object could be 
speedily and cheaply accomplished, viz. : By enlarging the locks of three 
short canals, of an aggregate length of only 78^ miles. A vessel enter- 
ing the sound of North Carolina, from the Atlantic Ocean, can proceed 
■by way of the Dismal Swamp Canal (22 miles long) to Norfolk; then 
passing up the Chesapeake Bay, communicating with both Washington 
and Baltimore, if desirable, it can sail into the Delaware River through a 
canal only 134- miles long; after communicating with the great city of 
Philadelphia, it could sail directly into New- York harbor, by passing 
through the Delaware and Raritan Canal, a distance of 43 miles, and 
thence proceed up the East River, 140 miles, to New London, before going 
to sea. Here is an inland communication between almost all of our lead- 
ing ports and cities along the maritime front of the populous and power- 
ful States of Connecticut, New-York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela- 
ware, Maryland,Virginia, and North Carolina — a distance of nearly 1,000 
miles, and having many facile and easily protected outlets to the sea. 
Suitable timber locks, capable of passing large war vessels, can be made 
ready for use, in a case of pressing emergency, in from twenty to twenty- 
five days. The Government has ample legal authority to make this great 
improvement, if a military necessity. As it is, let it be done, and in such 
a manner that we can easily concentrate large ships at any desirable har- 
bor to resist any invasion, when the telegraph shall announce the dis- 
asters or separations wrought on the enemy's fleet by storms or by our 
returning squadrons. The engineers strongly recommend this double 
coast line as a remarkable military advantage possessed by neither Eng- 
land nor France. Our own sense tells us that if a ship or ships of war 
or commerce should be blockaded in a harbor, and thus prevented from 
going to sea, the evil would be lessened if the harbor was connected, by 
a safe and unexposed interior channel, with all the harbors on the coast 
for a thousand miles — so also a blockade of one harbor could be broken 
up, by quietly concentrating in it a superior force drawn from the other 
harbors connected with it by the interior channel. 



36 

Let us also earnestly request the Government to aid in opening the 
comnuinication for our iron gun-boats from the Mississippi to the Hudson, 
the Delaware and St. Lawrence. Then in the event of war, our iron-clad 
ships from the West, through the loyal States, could sail directly into 
the lakes, proceed to the head of the St. Lawrence, and protect the 
crossing of an array sufficiently powerful to conmiand that river as low 
down a^ lAIontrea!, and thus prevent a single British soldier from pene- 
trating the interior. This accomplished, what amount of opposition 
could the unaided and defenseless Canadians make to our Western 
troops ? The navigable waters of Canada secured, this inland fleet could 
forthwith repair to the aid of our defences at the mouth of the Hudson. 
A period of from ten to twenty days would place them at either point. 
In thirty days, in despite of the utmost efforts of England, the United 
States could control the upper St. Lawrence and the whole chain of 
lakes, for they have no iron-clads competent to navigate those waters, 
and to meet our superb Western iron-clad fleet, with its 11, 13 and 15 
inch guns. Since the inauguration upon the waters of the Chesapeake, 
of a new era in the art of naval warfare, we have placed our country at 
the head of naval powers in eftective strength, and the mechanical force 
of the country, for the time being, should be called into requisition in 
enlarging and strengthening the navy ; and the comprehensive policy 
should be adopted of allowing the merchant marine to aid in its own 
defence by its incorporation into a militia navy, under proper laws and 
restrictions. We ought now to commence, and complete within six 
months, a heavy fleet of iron-clads of superior speed, and at least twice ■ 
the capacity of the Monitor : and of the three millions of enrolled 
militia in the loyal States, with • one million in the field, we may confi- 
dently anticipate bringing this infamous Rebellion to a triumphant close. 
With such an army and navy, with the forts armed with the modern im- 
proved ordnance of large calibre ; with the valuable inlets to harbors, 
roadsteads and sounds, skillfully obstructed ; with an interior water com- 
munication between the several ports and harbors on the Atlantic, so as 
to make it safe and convenient to speedily pass a fleet from one to another 
entirely beyond the observation of any enemy lying off" a fort ; with a 
navigable communication between New- York bay and the lakes, and 
between the lakes and St. Louis and New Orleans, that would allow of a 
_ movement of the whole fleet from New Orleans to New-York, or from 
New-York to New Orleans, by an inland route free from danger and ob- 
servation, surely we can maintain our national unity and our national 
honor. But I must draw these remarks to a close. New-York again to- 
day, as at the beginning of the struggle, demonstrates that she is still 
loyal to the Government and the Constitution. She feels the deepest 
sympathy for the martyred dead, who have fallen in defence of constitu- 
tional, well-regulated liberty. As the tidings of this great gathering are 
borne throughout the loyal camps, it will animate the heart and nerve the 
arm of our brave and intrepid soldiers. In behalf of that immense army 
of privates, Avho have left home and kindred and friends, to meet the 
traitors striking at the heart of the nation, and who never mean to 
abandon this contest until the old flag again floats over every inch of our 
original territorial limit, I ask you to send them the cheering words of 
your hearty commendation. 



37 

Gen. WalbridCxE was cheered throughout most enthusiasti- 
cally, and as he was concluding, said he had prepared some 
resolutions, which he would read and if they met the approval 
of this vast, intelligent and patriotic assemblage, he would request 
the Mayor to ask for their adoption. As Gen. Wa lb ridge read 
each one, cheer after cheer welcomed them, and when tlie last 
was concluded, the whole vast assemblage gave one unbroken 
and hearty Yea. The Mayor then formally oftered them again, 
when they were carried, amidst the most tumultuous and enthu- 
siastic applause. 

Resolved. That the territorial limits of the United States, as they existed before 
this infamous rebellion beg-an, and the Constitution which guarantees their ex- 
istence, should forever remain one, entire, united and indivisible. 

Resolved, That the division of the former, and the overthrow of the latter' 
would constitute a damning crime to all eternity. 

Resolved, That as the blood of our slaughtered citizen soldiers, fallen in de- 
fence of constitutional liberty, cries to Heaven for redress, we declare that, to 
suppress this Rebellion and sa,ve the national life, the Government should call 
into exercise every agency employed by the Rebels themselves to make the war 
eiFective, conclusive and of short duration. 

Resolved, That we tender to our unfortunate countrymen, now languishing by 
captivity in Southern prisons, our earnest and cordial sympathy, and we beseech- 
ingly implore the Government to effect their honorable exchange and release at 
the earliest possible moment. 

Resolved, That since integrity by public servants in the discharge of official 
duty is the only guaranty for good government, we call upon Congress to give the 
authority, and the Government to execute it. by hanging upon a gibbet higher 
than ever Haman hung, every official in any department of the public service, 
who attempts at this juncture of our public affairs to fatten upon the misfortunes 
of the Republic, either by defrauding the public Treasury, employing his public 
position to advance private pecuniary objects, or who shall be found guilty of im- 
posing upon our brave soldiers any base article either in the food or raiment 
provided for them by the Government. 

Resolved, That Congress should provide for opening the great line of interior 
water communication along our Atlantic coast, capable of passing our naval 
fleet and our commercial marine from the waters of the Roanoke and Chesapeake 
Bay to the eastern terminus of Long Island, and should at once open the means 
of internal communication, by which our gun-boats can pass from the Mississippi 
through the loyal States, by the various canals and lakes, until they reach the 
Atlantic sea-board, by the most cheap and expeditious routes that scientific and 
practical knowledge may develop. 

Resolved, That our commercial marine, now largely in advance of any other 
nation, should be so organized as to aid in the means of its own defence, and that 
it is the duty of Congress to provide for this by incorporating a portion of the 
same into a " Militia of the Seas," and thus inaugurate a new element of Nation- 
al strength and defence, commensurate with our growing importance as a great 
leading maritime power. 



38 

Resnlvpfl, That steadily pursuinp; the wise policy of our fathers, we never mean 
to interfere in the internal conflicts of foreign States, but here, beneath this out- 
stretched sky, in the presence of Almij^hiy God, and of one another, we pledge 
our lives, our fortunes, and our sacn^d honor, never to abandon this struggle 
while there remains a traitor in the land ; and that any armed intervention by 
any foreign power in our present dom<!stic affliction, shall prove the signal for 
the spirit of Liberty to commence its triumphant march thi-ough Europe. 

On the part of the Chairman, Mr. John Austin Stevens, Jr., 

announced the following resolution, which was unanimously 

adopted : 

J?c.so/rer/, That this meeting cordially unites in recommending to the Governor 
and Legislature of this State, to take the earliest means of pledging the State to 
the payment of an additional bounty to volunteers. 

The Star-Spangled Banner was then sung bj the chorus and 
band, thousands of voices joining in the stirring refrain. 

Mr. Dunn was next introduced, and after a few preliminary 

and patriotic remarks, read a j^oem, from which the following is 

an extract : 

Only once in every lifetime comes the hour for man to prove 

'I'he depih, the truth, the earnestness of patriotic love ; 

Only once in every lifetime comes the people thrilling jar 

'I'hat purifies the nation in the crucible of war ; 

AVhich vindicates the Jionor of the Truth and proves the might 

Of the never-ihwartt'd purpose which is founded in the light. 

And God will sately guard the man and make him doubly strong, 

Who battles in the cause of Right against the cause of Wrong. 

To the camp-enshrined Potomac, to its blood-stained, throbbing strand. 

Points the i)lain, unerring finger of God's invocating hand, 

And I hear the thrilling voices of the martyrs, one by one. 

Saying, " Freemen I On to <ilory, u'hilc there's labor to be done .'" 

And can 1 stand here idle while I hear my country's call ? 

While I see the gloom of treason 'round the Union's temple fall ? 

No ! I'll grasp the sword of duty, and move onward in the van, 

To the deeds which bless The Ages and uphold the Rights of Max ! 

SPEECH OF EX-SENATOR SPINOLA. 

Ex-Senator Spinola, having been introduced to the meeting, on 
coming forward was warmly received. He said : — 

I did not come here this day to make a speech to you. No I come 
for a nobler purpose aud a more important object, I come to ask you 
to join with me. (Hear, and applause.) The hour has arrived when it 
becomes the duty of every American citizen to buckle on his armor and 
go forward to the fight. (Loud cheers.) I have now, since our last 
glorious meeting in this place, witnessed the progress of this wretched 
rebellion, and my only regret is that a sufficient "force was not then at 



39 

once raised to drive the fomenteis of it out of the country, and forever to 
keep it down. You are once more again gathered together in a great 
mass meeting to frustrate its future progress, and I call upon you to do 
your duty to your country in this the hour of her peril. (Apphmse, and 
cries of " We shall do so.") There were those who, at the last great 
mass meeting of New-York, were pretended friends to the Union, but 
who, I regret to state, as matters have since turned out, were the vilest 
snakes of treason. (Hear, and loud cheers.) Let our Northern States 
fall into Southern hands — let them sway the destinies of this mighty and 
world-famed republic — and if ever the day shouUl arise when such a state 
of things should happen, not even man, woman or child would receive 
the slightest mercy at the hands of those Southern rebels. (Cries of 
"That's true — go on, Spinola.") Give them, I say, the upper hand, and 
the people of the North will soon feel the eftects of Southern steel. But 
let them come on — I ask tliem to do so ; and if we have the real princi- 
ples of freedom at heart, we shall soon teach them Avhat virtue is in 
Northern arms. (Applause.) There is another great consideration in 
which we are all deeply interested. Let the South be successful and the 
North will not only have to pay the expenses of the rebellion, but to live 
in thralldom under their bloody sceptre. (Hear, hear.) As I said at the 
commencement of these remarks, I told you that I wished you to join 
with me in endeavoring to crush this awful rebellion. (Cries of " And 
so we will.") I have already determined, as you all know, to bear my 
humble part in this war, and in crushing the rebellion. I shall do so ; and 
should I meet with or discover any poor Southern wretch peculatino- the 
property of our gallant Northern troops, I will not go to the trouble of 
gibbeting him, but he shall sutler at the point of the bayonet. (Applause.) 
In connecting myself with the great Union army, I promise that the men 
Avhom I may be appointed to command shall receive my best attention. 
In the hour of danger and also of sickness I hope to stand by them, and 
to see that their Avants are well cared for. Their wounds shall be skill- 
fully attended to. (Loud cheers.) I look upon these duties as incumbent 
upon every commander to considerately carry out. Let us recollect those 
great men who gave us this government, and if we do we cannot but re- 
spect their memories. We are, the most of us, well acquainted with 
what they passed through. This should stimulate us in fighting hard in 
defence of the great Constitution which they formed on so permanent a 
basis. We are a well equipped body of men ; our military reputation 
cannot be excelled, and we are the best men in arms in the world. (Loud 
cheering.) I am now raising a brigade to join the great army of the 
North, and before long I hope that I shall be ready to head that brigade 
to the glorious battle-tield. (Hear, hear.) After a few other remarks the 
ex-Senator concluded his address by calling on those present, who felt a 
desire to join his brigade, at once to do so. He said : I promise them 
every indulgence and encouragement, and so long as they tight under one 
flag — the glorious flag of the Union — they shall be secured in these. 
(Great applause.) 



40 

MR. BAN YARD'S ADDRESS. 

Mr. Baxvard was next introduced to the meeting, and said : — 

Patriotic Fellow-Citizens, — I want to let you know that I have 
some knowled(>;e of secession, and shall crave your indulgence for only a 
short time. Humphrey Marshall, of Kentucky, happened to move up 
with ten thousand men, but he was not long until he moved down again. 
(Loud cheers and laughter.) I know him personally, and I have very 
little to say in his favor, only that he soon discovered his mistake and 
did not make a second attempt. (Loud cheers.) I know the spirit of 
secession well, and have seen its workings. I have no hesitation what- 
ever in declaring that its object is to uproot the principles of free govern- 
ment in this country, which have been so securely established by the first 
founders of that glorious, happy, and free Constitution. (Loud cheers ) 
Would time permit I could enter more into detail, but shall content my- 
self with these few remarks. 

The proceedings were here closed, and the meeting adjourned. 



OFFICERS. 



STAND No. 2. 

Under charge of Committee of Arraug'ements, 
PROSPER M. WETISrORE. SAMUEL SLOAN. 



President, 

PELATIAH PERIT, President oj the Chamber of Commerce. 



Vice-Presidents. 



Royal Phelps, 
A. A. Low, 
John A. Stevens, 
John C. Green, 
Robert B. Minturn, 
John D. Wolfe, 
James W. Otis, 
Henry J. Raymond, 
T. H. Fah.e, 
James G. King, 
Joseph W. Alsop, 
Moses Taylor, 
Benjamin R. Winthrop, 
James Gallatin, 
William A. Booth, 
Shepherd Knapp, 
R. A. Witthaus, 

E. E. Morgan, 
Robert L. Kennedy, 
Richard W. Weston, 
Manton Marble, 

J. Smith Homans, 
W. W. De Forest, 
Wilson G. Hunt. 
Samuel D. Babcock, 
Henry F. Vail, 
H. W. T. Mali, 
Jacob Herrick, 
Charles King, 
John S. Giles, 
M. Marble, 
Josiah Sutherland, 
Edwin J. Brown, 

F. Schroedler, 
W. H. Leonard, 
Frederick A. Coe, 

6 



John Jacob Astor, Jr., 
Henry A. Hurlbut, 
Francis W. Skiddy, 
WiLLARD Parker, 
Samuel T. Skidmore, 
William C. Gilman, 
E. V. Haughwout, 
William Watson, 
D. T. Ingraham, 
John Raymond, 
Philip Dater, Jr., 
Samuel P. Williams, 
George Bliss, Jr., 
U. A. Mubdock, 
Jno. L. Hasbrouck, 
Geo. W. Brainerd, 
Austin L. Sands. 
Lemuel W. Hopkins, 
Samuel B. White, 
Moses M. Laird, 
George 0. Totten, 
Nathan Kixgsley, 
Chester A. Arthur, 
John Hewett, 
William B. Taylor, 
James Renwick, Jr., 
James A. Roosevelt, 
Benj. Arnold, 
Jacob Nevins, 
William J. Corwin, 
Lucius Tuckerman, 
Joseph P. Varnum, Jr. 
William B. Hoffman, 
David Miller, 
D. C. Hayes, 
Eugene Keteltas, 



42 



Alfred Colvill, 
Abraham M. Cozzens, 
Theodore L. Mason, 
R. D Hitchcock, 
John H. Swift, 
Geo. Clark, 
A. B. Hays, 
James Oliver, 
Albert Speyers, 
Andrew Mathews, 
Robert L. McIntyre, 
John Warren, 
Paul S. Forbes, 
Timothy G. Churchill, 
E. Caylus, 
Robert S. Hone. 
Richard D. Lathrop, 
William Hall, 



Daniel B. Fearing, 
Charles A. Bristed, 
Justus Dill, 
James B. Taylor, 
George Osgood, 
Charles B. Beebe, 
Edward Minturn, 
Chas. L. Tiffany, 
George S. Parker, 
George Anthon, 
James Gerard, 
William Kellock, 
Oscar Coles, 
Samuel D. Bradford, 
F. S. Lathrop, 
Joseph Lee, 
James Udall, 
Hamilton Bruce. 



Secretaries. 



Edward C. Bogert, 
J. Smith Homans, Jr., 
Henry I. Barbey, 
George D. Lyman, 
Irving Grinnell, 
William E. Dodge, Jr., 
William H. Crenelle, 
Walker Burns, 
J. Howard VV^illiams, 
Andrew Warner, 
Frank Shepherd, 
Louis Belloni, Jr., 
John H. Draper, 



Temple Prime, 
Bleecker Oothout. 
Geo. Wilson, 
Edward Willets, 
Frank Otis, 
Washington Coster, 
David Bishop, 
Andrew H. Sands, 
John W. Minturn, 
Henry Keteltas, 
Joseph P. Norris, Jr., 
Edward S. Renwick. 



PROGRAMME OF PROCEEDINGS. 



STAND No. 



Salutes of Artillery by Axthon Light Battery and by 
the Workmen employed by Henry Brewster & Co. 

1. Music — Grand March. 

2. Prosper M. Wetmore will call the meeting to order, read the 
Call for the Meeting, and conduct to the Chair Pelatiah 
Perit, President of the Chamber of Commerce. 

8. A. C. KiCHARDS will read the List of Vice-Presidents and 
Secretaries. 

4. Pelatiah Perit, Chairman, will address the Meeting. 

5. Charles H. Russell will read the Address adopted by 

the Convention of Committees. 

6. Samuel D. Babcock will read the Resolutions adopted by 
the Convention of Committees. 

7. Music — Yolunteer Chorus, by Henry Camp and Friends, — 

Star-Spangled Banner. 

8. Rev. Francis Vinton will address the Meeting. 

9. Music — A^olunteer Songs — God Speed the Riglit. 

10. Charles P. Daly will address the Meeting. 

11. Music— Hail Columbia. 

12. David S. Coddington will address the Meeting. 



44 

Mr. Peosper ]\[. Wetmore called the meeting to order, read 
the call for the meeting, and also the following letter from Mr. 
Pelatiah Perit, who had been designated by the Committee 
of arrangements to preside over the stand. 

LETTER OF P. PERIT. 

New Haven, Jitlij Uth, 1862. 
John A. Stevens, Jr., Esq., Secretary Chamber of Commerce, N. Y. : 

My Dear Sir, — I liave been favored to-day with your telegraphic note of this 
date informin": nie tliat I have been appointed to preside at the stand of the 
Chamber of Commerce, at the public meeting to be held to-morrow. 

Having been confined to my bed by sickness since my return from New-York, 
1 am quite unable to proceed to the city, and shall thus be prevented from tak- 
ing part in the great demonstration. 

'I'hat the meeting will be large and enthusiastic, I cannot doubt, and I trust it 
will be as powerful in its influence for good as was that which followed the at- 
tack on Sumter. 

I shall be present with you in feeling though not in person. 

"Very truly, yours, 

P. PERIT. 

Mr. Wetmore nominated for Chairman Mr. A. A. Low, second 
Vice-President of the Chamber of Commerce, who was unani- 
mously elected. 

Mr. A. C. RicnARDS read the list of A^ice-Presidents and Sec- 
retaries which had been prepared by the Committee, and which 
was adopted with unanimity. 

ADDRESS OF A. A. LOW, ESQ. 

Fellow-Citizens, — I share with you in your regret that the much re- 
spected gentleman, who was expected to preside over this meeting, is 
prevented by illness from being present. The honor naturally belonged 
to one who has, so often, by liis cheering presence, imparted grace and 
dignity to our public gatherings ; and I know with what pleasure he has 
answered every expectation when the interests of this community have 
been involved. 

In the absence of Mr. Perit, to whom I have just referred, and in the 
absence of the first Vice-President of the Chamber of Commerce, it de- 
volves upon me, in obedience to your vote, to announce the object of this 
meeting. 

Indeed, it needs no announcement. There is but one call that brings 
together men of all parties, of all professions, and of every name. It is 
the call of our country. The existing emergency is too well understood 
to require any labored explanations. Your response to the summons 
which has brought you here lias been too hearty and enthusiastic to war- 
rant a passionate a[>peal to your patriotism. 



In tliis great metropolis of llie Union, in this Square, consecrated to 
the Union, by the great pledges recorded here a year ;igo in Aj)ril, it is 
especially meet that, at this critical juncture, men of all parties should 
assemble once more and unite in a fresh resolve to support the Constitu- 
tion and the Union ; to sustain the Chief Executive of the nation ; to give 
a new impulse to the popular mind ; to manifest by word and by deed 
an unalterable determination to sustain the great cause for which 
such sacrifices have been made — for which so much blood has been 
shed. 

For more than a year one great burden has rested ui)on every loyal 
heart. Your most anxious thoughts for yourselves and for your children 
have centered upon our country, convulsed by civil war, and still doomed 
to suffer. Your brightest hopes, your most glorious anticipations have all 
been directed to the re-establishment of this great Republic, in its full and 
magnificent proportions. For this, brave men have fought, and good 
men have prayed. 

Through all discouragements, and through all reverses, this has been 
the undeviating purpose, the unfaltering trust of good and true men. To 
see the people of the United States, from North to South and East to 
West, bound together once more by a common interest and a common 
love in our vast brotherhood, has been the jjaramount desire, the ardent 
prayer of every true patriot. 

Touch your throbbing hearts, and tell me if this be not so ; if, through 
all the anxious and eventful scenes of our great national struggle, supe- 
rior to every fear, one hope has not predominated all other hopes — the 
ever ardent aspiration that our country may survive its fiery trial — may 
soon issue forth triumphantly, "both purified and glorified!'' That this 
last experiment of man to found and sustain a Republican government, 
whose standard is the symbol of civil and religious freedom, may l)ecorae 
an unquestioned success ; and that these United States, increasing in 
number and growing in grandeur, may continue to be the asylum of the 
oppressed, the admiration of all lovers of liberty, the fear of all the foes 
of freedom throughout the world. 

During the great crisis which has so tasked the energies of the whole 
country, the city of New-York has poured forth in unmeasured flow 
her money and her men, answering every requisition with an unstinted 
hand. True to the inspirations of her extended commerce, her contribu- 
tions to the finances of the country have been generous and bountiful. 
The merchants of this city know too well the value of free and uninter- 
rupted intercourse with every section of the Union, of open ports and 
navigable rivers, to be inditferent to the issues of this great controversy, 
did not a more worthy patriotism prompt to the largest sacrifices for the 
attainment of the noblest ends. 

Your presence here to-day, in answer to the call, so hastily promul- 
gated, shows that you are alive to the importance of the crisis; that no- 
thing will be wanting on your part which may be asked of loyal and 
intelligent men that is conducive to an honorable adjustment of our Na- 
tional difiiculties ; that you appreciate the magnitude of the eft'ort still to 
be made; and that you are prepared for every sacrifice that duty en- 
joins, that patriotism dictates. 

The Committee of Arrangements have caused an Address to be pre- 



46 

pared, which will now be read to you ; and a series of Resolutions will be 
submitted for your consideration. 

I shall presently have the honor of introducing several distinguished 
citizens, who have been invited to enforce these resolutions by their elo- 
quent words. 

Mr. Samuel Sloan read the Address adopted by tlie Con- 
vention of Committees, which was received with great applanse. 

Mr. A. C. EiCHARDS read the Resolutions adopted hj the Con- 
vention of Committees which were accepted with cheers. 

JUDGE DALY'S ADDRESS. 

The Chairman then introduced Hon. Charles P. Daly, First 
Judge of the Common Pleas, who was received with applause. 
He said : — 

When two parts of a great nation have divided, and are arrayed in 
open Avar against each other, it is a waste of time to dwell upon the 
causes that have produced it. Having thrown all other considerations 
aside, and grappled together in mortal strife, nothing remains then but 
to determine which of the two will be compelled to yield. [Cheers,] 
There was a time when mediation and compromise were possible. It has 
passed, and it is of no consequence now who are responsible for the 
neglect or opposition by which that opportunity was lost. He that 
supposes that the South would listen to any terms of settlement now, 
except such as it is impossible for the North to grant, is a political 
dreamer. Nothing can be done now except what is done by military 
means. The South has taken its position, and it will not recede from it 
unless it is compelled to. Whatever Union sentiment may have existed 
there, it is crushed out, and there is nothing apparent there now but 
sympathetic unanimity and a dogged determination to persist in the 
course they have taken. Whatever doubt, hesitation or difference of 
opinion may have prevailed at first, the sentiment is now universal that 
they have gone so far that they cannot go back ; that they must now go 
on, whatever may be the consequence or the sacrifice. Everything with 
them, then, is reduced to a question of endurance, and the sooner we 
wake up to the consciousness of this state of facts, the more fully will we 
comprehend our own position and the obligations and duties that are 
imposed upon us. [Cheers.] Leaving out of view the political dif- 
ferences which may have incited and led to this war, what is it that the 
South have determined with such great unanimity to do, and which the 
North, with equal unanimity, have determined to resist ? Constituting 
but little more than one third of the population of the whole country, 
the inliabitants of the Southern States have determined to seize the 
largest part of our territory, geographically ; to appropriate to themselves 
nearly tlie whole of our sea-(;oast, and tlie mouths of nearly all our 
principal rivers — and construct out of it a foreign nation. Of the eighty- 



47 

four rivers which, descending through a common territory, tind their way 
to the sea and serve as the great outlets of the industry and commerce 
of the whole people, they modestly propose to take to themselves the pos- 
session and control of seventy-two, including the largest and most impor- 
tant ; leaving to us but the nund)er of twelve, watering that comparatively 
small strip of territory extending from the Hudson River to the northern 
boundary of Maine. [Groans] They propose to cut us oft" from those 
elements of national existence determined by the curvature of mountain 
forms and by the course of rivers, and leave us a territory so irregular 
and so badly adjusted in respect to its dependent parts, as to make it 
impossible for us to keep it together as a nation. Look at the political 
boundaries of the nations upon the map of the globe, and not one will be 
foupd with a territory so disjointed and fragmentary as the one that 
would then be left us. If a foreign nation undertook to do this, we would 
resist to the last drop of our blood ; and does i,t make any difterence that 
those who are seeking to accomplish it, have hitherto been a part of our- 
selves, and profter to us in the future nothing but vows of eternal hate ? 
[Applause.] After eighty-six years of existence as one government and 
one people, eight millions rise up and say to twenty millions, " We will 
take the largest part of this country for ourselves, and you must accept 
what we think proper to leave you ; we are the better born, the nobler race, 
the aristocracy ; we do not choose to labor ourselves, we prefer to have a 
servile class to labor for us, and therefore have no sympathy with the 
trading spirit by which you have increased and multiplied, nor with the 
mechanical, manufacturing and various industrial pursuits to which you 
are devoted." [Groans.] They say to us, " There has never been such 
a thing as the American nation ; it has been only a mere partnership of 
sovereign states which any one might dissolve at its pleasure. We have 
respectively dissolved it, and in the partition of the partnership eftects we 
have made our own adjustment, taken what has pleased us, and left to 
you what we thought proper." To submit to this is to allow the weaker 
to dictate to the stronger — [cries of " Never "] — to allow the eight millions 
of the South to prescribe to the twenty millions of the North what shall 
be there future position. The man who v/as born in a Northern State, or 
who became a citizen by adoption, is as much a citizen of South Carolina 
as those who were born or who dwell there. [Cheers.] And neither 
their Southern doctrine of State rights, nor their rebellious attempt at 
exclusiveness, can deprive him of it. To submit to the designs of the South, 
is to consent to national annihilation. It is to consent, in a national point of 
view, to take territorially an inferior and subordinate position ; to take a 
territory so placed geographically, that its dismemberment, the breaking 
of it up into several parts, must be the inevitable consequence. The 
question, then, is not whether we shall conquer the South, but whether 
the South shall conquer us. [Cheers.] It is whether the present 
aristocracy of the Southern States, and their retainers, shall deprive the 
intelligent and industrious masses of the North of a territorv, the joint 
possession of which they have equally inherited, and which is essential to 
the unfettered exercise of their industry, and to their full development as 
a nation. It is this which gives to this contest the character of a n:ortal 
struggle, in which neither will yield unless compelled to do so by tlie 
superior military prowess of the other. [Applause.] It is not like other 



48 

civil wars — a struggle between two classes of society, living ' together, 
where the one seeks to get the mastery over the other and establish a 
form of o-overnment ; but it is one part of a country enjoying in every 
respect the same political privileges Avhich insists upon breaking otf 
territorially, and which for that purpose has arrayed itself in open war 
against the other. [Cheers.} The thing which most nearly resembles it is the 
division of the once compact Republic of Colombia into the now insigni- 
ficant IStates of Ecuador, New Grenada and Venezuela, with the fruitful 
lesson which that furnishes in the miserable state of anarchy now 
prevailin!*: in these distracted and wretched countries. We have scarcely 
yet risen in the North to the full consciousness of the magnitude of the 
struggle in which we are engaged. We have not fully comprehended 
the "momentous consequences which are involved and the vital afid 
disastrous effects upon us if we fail to succeed. 

In this struggle, which to us is for existence, we have a task upon us 
equivalent to the conquering of a nation. [Cheers.] We have from the 
beginning undervalued the capacity and power of resistance on the part of 
the South, and have men now in Congress, who believe that the South is 
to be conquered by the enactment of laws — [laughter and cheers] — Con- 
gressional doctors ignorant enough to think that an armed rebellion of 
eio-ht millions of people can be put down by the passage of statutes. We 
have not realized the extent of resources that is demanded — of money, 
of men, and of the material of war. As a peaceful people, suddenly roused 
up, we iiave displayed extraordinary energy, and in so short a space of 
time have put forth an extent of naval and military strength almost in- 
credible. [Cheers.] But great as has been our effort, that of the South 
has been greater. She has drafted the whole of her available population, 
determined to overmatch us by the promptitude with which she has 
brought troops into the field. She is said to have two hundred and 
twenty thousand men now at Richmond, while we have not half that 
number. She has made a last great effort ; and, should we pause here, 
it will be, on her part, a successful one. We will be beaten, humiliated 
and disgraced. All that we have hitherto done will have gone for noth- 
ing, and we will retire from the contest with a contracted territory and a 
gigantic load of debt, which of itself will be a reason for one part of 
the country to shift it off upon the other by acts of dismemberment and 
separation. To avert these calamities, a call is made by the Government 
upon the country for three hundred thousand men ; and if that call is 
promptly responded to, the suppression of the rebellion will be but a 
question of time. [Cheers.] It will soon be seen whether our people 
are, or are not, equal to the great emergency which now calls upon them 
to act. If they fail in this crisis, then the South are, as they have claimed 
to be. our masters. They will triumph in the consciousness that they have 
chafed into submission those artisans, tradesmen and laborers of the North. 
We are masters upon the water, but on the land the heart of this rebellion 
has not yet been reached, and it will not be unless this levy is raised. If 
this call is responded to, and three hundred thousand men rapidly put in 
the field we shall be armed in a double sense : — First, it will secure us 
against foreign interv^ention — [loud cheers] ; and, secondly, \ve shall ac- 
complish what we undertook to do when we first rose to the defence of 
our government and our flag. The season, being the time of harvest, is 



49 

not a propitious one, and if, from that or any other cause, this force can- 
not be raised by vohinteering- in time to meet the present pressing emer- 
gencies of the government, I can see no good reason why a draft should 
not at once be made. [Loud and general expression of approbation.] 
Our enemies have resorted to it, and it is now the chief soun^e of their 
strength. The government of Europe which most nearly resembles our 
own — the republic of Switzerland — was placed a few years ago in a situa- 
tion exactly like ours. The southern cantons undertook to break oft' and 
establish a confederate government by themselves. The northern can- 
tons,- constituting, as we do, the maiority of the population, raised an army 
and crushed the rebellion. The plan which they resorted to, and which 
proved eminently successful, was to draft the whole of the requisite force 
in the very beginning. It brought into the army men of all ranks and 
conditions, making it a high-toned, intelligent and patriotic body. While 
our system of volunteering is enormously expensive, the measure adopted 
by the republic of Switzerland was economical and brought together a 
devoted, disinterested and patriotic body of men. It is at least fair and 
just in its operation, as it casts the duty of defending the government 
equally upon all classes — [cheers] — and if the necessity should exist I do 
not see why we should hesitate to resort to it. The man who is not will- 
ing to defend a free and liberal government like this, when the lot is cast 
upon him. is unfit to live under H and enjoy its blessings. [Loud applause.] 
Our national existence, then, depends upon our obtaining the three hun- 
dred thousand men. To that every other consideration is subordinate. 
Like Aaron's rod, it swallows up every other, and the whole energies of 
the people and of the Government must be devoted to it. But the men 
now called to come forth to the rescue of the nation, have a right to de- 
mand that they shall be led by generals, and not by politicians in uniform ; 
and we, men of all parties assembled here to-day in this mighty gather- 
ing of the intelligence and patriotism of the masses of this great metropo- 
lis, have a right to call upon our temporary rulers at Washington to 
imitate the example which is here set them of unity, of public spirit and 
patriotism, [cheers] ; to leave off the discussion of measures upon 
which we are a divided people, and think only of the preservation of the 
country in this pressing crisis. Let them bear in mind that they are not 
as great men as they suppose themselves to be, and learn something of 
that fine element of character — humility. Let them remember that more 
than two thirds of the men composing the army of the Union are opposed 
to them politically, and, above all, let the civilians in Washington give up 
directing and controlling the operations of generals in the field. [Loud 
cheers,] The Archduke Charles was but little inferior in military genius 
to Napoleon, and with the superior numbers at his command might have 
been more than a match for his great adversary, had not his operations in 
the field been controlled by the Aulic Council sitting at Vienna. To this 
body every unemployed general and intrusive civilian, as at Washington, 
had access, and, ignorant of the changes and vicissitudes which attend a 
campaign, this Council baffled the best laid plans of the Archduke by 
controlling his opinion and prescribing beforehand what the movement 
of the armies should be ; and had not Wellington, in the war of the 
Peninsula, openly disregarded the suggestions, and even orders, that came 
to him from London, the British arms would never have triumphed over 



50 

the generals of Napoleon. [Cheers.] No general under heaven can 
accomplish anything if, in addition to the enemy in front, he has also to 
fiofht against an army of detractors and advisers in his rear. [Prolonged 
applause.] If he is incompetent, take the responsibility and remove him ; 
but while he is in command let him command. We can raise the three 
hundred thousand men ; but if the spirit of meddlesome interference at 
Washington, controlling the operations of generals in the field, does not 
meet the contempt it deserves in the indignant rebuke of our whole peo- 
ple, then our energies will be wasted again, and in the fullness of national 
calamity we will be left but to lament over the madness and folly of our 
temporary rulers. [Loud applause.] 

Three cheers were given for Judge Daly. 

SPEECH OF HON. DAYID S. CODDINGTON. 

Hon. D. S. CoDDiNGTON was the next speaker. He was greeted 
with api^lause, and said : — 

Fellow-Citizens, — In this hour of alienation, tumult, and disaster, no 
man, however humble, has a right to sit still when the nation has sprung 
to its feet, and the Union lies bleeding upon its back. [Cheers.] 

We have come here in the darkest hour of National existence to de- 
clare before the world that the unity and nationalitv of America shall 
not be dissolved, either in the swamps of the Chickahominy or the Coun- 
cil Chambers of Paris or London. [Great applause.] We are all, under 
moral martial law, now bound to obey every draft upon the brain, the 
heart, the purse, and the life, to serve a Government, whose authority 
has dropped upon us with the gentleness of a flower, and yet shielded us 
with the strength of a giant. We may have our weaknesses, and these 
weaknesses may serve to point an English sneer, or round a Southern 
taunt ; but they never yet have succeeded in vitiating the grander points 
of our National character, neither have they, for one moment, obstructed 
the beneficent action of our hitherto unassailable institutions. [Cheers.] 
If secession is right, then all order, all regulated society, is wrong. If 
sec^ession cannot be put down without war, then war is the highest duty 
and best business of the American citizen — more profitable than mer- 
chandise, more beautiful than poetry, and, for the time being, as sacred 
as the ministry itself. True, we may fail sometimes ; so do all business 
and sciences until experience teaches them. By degrees we shall learn 
the art of blood, and mayhap the foe will find the Yankee shop-boy an 
efficient chronic portable slaughter-house. So far we have fought half 
tiger and half brother. No half man accomplishes much. We Vnust be 
all tiger now, that we may be all brothers by and by. [Laughter and 
applause.] 

^ If fevers and blunders have wasted the strength and tampered with the 
glory of our armies, the beautiful enthusiasm of this day's proceedings 
illustrates how heartily and abundantly we try to redeem our errors and 
relieve our heroes. Was it not a sublime spectacle to see the President 
of the United States pouring the balm of his sympathizing Presidential 



51 

presence into the serried ranks of the wearied army of the Potomac — 
Abraham Lincoln confronting Geo. B. McClellan ? [Loud cheers for 
McClellan.] The embodied representative of the National authority 
shaking* hands with the genius of American safety — the great rail-splitter 
reproaching therailers against the noble army and its gifted chieftain. 

When Abraham Lincoln was nominated, I laughed at the convention ; 
when he was elected, I trembled for the country ; but since he lias been 
inaugurated, I have learned to love and honor the man who has so faith- 
fully wielded the National resources. [Great applause.] When the 
South struck at the President, they fired at a man in the stocks, cooped 
up in judicial decisions, bound down by legislative restrictions, warned 
away from all philanthropic mischief by the wholesome hostility of an 
adverse popular vote. They found him in quiet, helpless, party paralysis, 
and only left him an aroused, wounded, angry National giant, with all 
the resources of all parties at his command. 

The South sneered at our poor, under-fed, over-worked soldiers, who 
fled from Bull Run ; but now the world laughs at a whole comnmnity 
who ran away from a shadow. Our soldiers left a few arms and knap- 
sacks on the field, Avhile they threw away long years of happiness and 
prosperity. Daily are we taunted with their superiority in arms and 
birth. They claim Washington, as if their deeds had made him. Out of 
the 200,000 troops who fought in the War of the Revolution, the South 
did not furnish 20,000. But for the North, Washington would have 
gone down to posterity with a halter around his neck. It was Northern 
hands that moulded his Virginia clay into an immortal statue. [Sensation.] 
Compared with our solid successes, what have the South achieved in 
this war ? Two or three land checks and one steam fright. [Laughter.] 
The ghost of the J/er/m"c will haunt the nation for centuries By di- 
verting the base of operations from the James River, it has cost us $100,- 
000,000. That sum would have built us 300 Monitors^ which would 
have blockaded all intervention. 

The march of events now means the march of armies. The progress 
of our institutions depends at last upon the speed of our bullets ; when 
they rain the Union is safe, when they slacken the Union reels. War is 
a cruel alternative, but not more so than a peace which removes from 
danger without relieving us of disgrace, disorder, and disintegration. 
We want not lamentation over this war, but enlistments in the war. Let 
us shed no tears but volunteers. [Great laughter.] We cannot succeed 
in this gigantic war until all classes are worked up to the thrusting point. 
There must be a fighting man from every family and every calling ; a 
fighting lawyer, a fighting doctor, a fighting priest, ay, and a fighting 
dandy. Now is the time for white kiiis to redeem themselves. Now is 
the time for all that army of fashionable loungers who have been growl- 
ing all their lives for lack of opportunity. Now is the time for them to 
rise, strike and be immortal. [" Good, good."] While the South have 
sent a thousand men to battle, we have sent a hundred. While they 
have mounted science to lead on their armies to victory, we have too 
often skipped experience and thrust politics on horseback to save the 
country. Twenty-three millions of people are tired of being told that 
they are outwitted because they are outnumbered. [Cheers.] If we fall 
now we will be the oddest ruin on record. Rome was four hundred years 



52 

dying of her own corruptions. We, instead of being enervated by luxury 
or discomfited by invasion, go down with all our strength and all our 
wealth, and all our wits about us. [Applause.] Destroyed by a remark, 
our great light blown out by the passionate breath of partisan oratory. 
[Great applause.] I, for one, can never believe in such a death. The 
ablest sword of the age is hanging by our side. The heaviest purse on 
the Continent is in our pocket; the noblest cause for which man can draw 
his brother's blood, calls him to the battle-field, and if we Avait patiently 
and act vigorously the greatest victory of modern times is in our grasp — 
the victory of the Republic over itself, the victory of democrat virtues 
over aristocrat vices, the victory of law, order, and Government over dis- 
union, distraction, conflagration, and dainnation. [Long applause,] 

On conclusion of the honorable gentleman's remarks, three 
cheers were proposed for Mr. Coddington, whicli were vociferously 
responded to. 

The Chairman, A. A. Low, Esq., said : — 

Fellow-Citizens, — We have here the Rev. Dr. Francis Vinton. He 
did not intend to speak ; but if there be a man from whom we have a 
right to expect a word, it is he. He belongs to a family, (as many of 
you know,) who have not only given their voice and their service, but 
their blood, to the country. He himself, though now a clergyman of 
one of our principal churches — old Trinity — is a West Pointer, and has 
served in the United States Army through one war. His nephew com- 
mands the 43d New- York Volunteers in the Army of the Potomac. A 
brother is the distinguished Deputy Quartermaster-General of the Army 
in this city ; and another brother, father of the Colonel of the 43d, died 
while in command of the trenches before Vera Cruz. [Cheers and cries, 
" Let us hear him."] I will ask the Rev. Doctor to say a few words to 
us [Cheers.] 

Dr. Vinton then came forward and spoke, substantially, as 
follows : — 

SPEECH OF REV. DR. FRANCIS VINTON. 

Fellow-Citizens, — I could not, after listening to such a call as that 
which I have just heard, remain silent and decline to lift my voice to 
speak to you. This war was not begun by us. When Major Ander- 
son was summoned to surrender Fort Sumter to the rebels, he refused, 
but added, in an unofficial w^ay, that in three days he would be starved 
out, and compelled to evacuate the fort. When his reply, official and 
unofficial, was telegraphed to Montgomery, the lightning flashed across 
the wires this response from the Confederate Gove^rnmenl, " Open fire at 



53 

once." Those rebel guns inaugurated the war against the Fhig and the 
Constitution and the Union of the United States. 

We have been, ever since, waging a defensive war — a war to defend, 
to protect and to maintain the Union and Constitution of our country, 
and thus to preserve our life as a nation. 

At this particular crisis, the war has become a question of honor or 
dishonor, of liberty or slavery, of death or of life, to you and your 
children. 

I waive all debate as to foregone points of policy or of party, of mis- 
take, of fraud, and whatever things soever liave irritated and divided the 
Free States, and I say that a crisis is upon us, when every ])atriot, 
whether he be father or mother, son or daughter, must lay the offering 
of his dearest possession upon the altar, in obedience to the command of 
God and of the State. Let our Isaac be ever so closely knit to our 
hearts and our hopes, we must be the faithful Abraham to give him up 
in sacrifice. [Cheers.] 

I have served our country in her army for ten years, and I speak to 
you as a military man. And I tell you that we have not lost an equal 
battle in this whole war ; even at Bull Run, we beat the army opposed 
to us. Beauregard, in his official report of that battle, says to Davis, 
that he had reluctantly given orders to retreat — that when he saw the 
columns approaching in his rear, he did not know whether they belonged 
to Patterson or to Johnson ; but when he found that they were reinforce- 
ments, and not opponents, then he began to hope for victory. 

In every action since Bull h'un (except, perhaps. Ball's Bluft) the 
loyal army of the United States has conquered the rebels, in fair fight 
and often against odds, causing them to evacuate and " skedaddle " after 
their first elan and onslaught. In proof of this, look at Bowling Green 
and Corinth, and the previous battles which delivered Missouri ; look at 
the evacuation of Columbus, of Manassas, of Yorktown, of Norfolk, and 
the defeat at Williamsburg, to say nothing of what our arjny and navy 
combined, have accomplished at Port Royal, and Fort Donelsou and 
New Orleans. 

But what chiefly demonstrates the superiority of the Union forces over 
the rebels, are the late series of victories of McClellan [cheers] in his 
march from the Pamunkey to the James River, in the last week of June 
and the first two days of .July. 

McClellan conquered the rebels in seven successive battles on seven 
successive days ; wherever he encountered the rebels he overthrew them, 
and is nearer Richmond now than ever he was before. [Cheers.] With 
the strong right arm of the country supporting him on James River — 
the navy— I say he is nearer to Richmond than ever. Though in the 
change of front to the new base of operations on James River, our army 
lost ten thousand men, yet the enemy lost (as they confess) thirty thou- 
sand : while we succeeded, in that manoeuvre, in concentrating the power 
of our forces, and the rebels were defeated in their attempt to prevent it. 

Fellow-citizens, there are some among us who echo the rebels' boast, 

and misname McClellan's change of front, a retreat^ and his casualties, a 

defeat. Nothing, in a military point of view, is more false than this 

aspect of the late battles before Richmond. What are the facts of the 

• case? The James River is the natural avenue to Richmond; McClellan 



54 

could not advance on that route while Norfolk was in possession of the 
rebels, and while the iron-clad Merrimac blockaded the mouth of the 
James River. When Norfolk was taken and the Merrimac was destroyed, 
and our ijun-boats had reached City Point, it was the true policy of 
McClellan to join the gun-boats, and unite our naval and military forces. 

McClellan, as early as Friday, in the third week of June, gave orders 
to remove the stores from the White House and the York River, round 
to the James, And it was done effectually, and without interruption or 
loss, by the following Tuesday. On Tuesday he moved his army ; it was 
attacked, and the attack was repulsed ; fresh hordes of the fugitives of 
Beauregard with the veterans of Johnson and Lee repeated the assaults 
on Wednesday, and Thursday, and Friday, and Saturday and Sunday, 
and each onslaught was repelled : on Monday, the advance of our army 
reached the James River, driving before them three thousand head of 
cattle and dragging their siege guns through the swamps of the Chicka- 
hominy, without the loss of a hoof or the abandonment of a gun. The 
dead and the wounded were necessarily left behind, and several field- 
pieces (twenty-five in number) were disabled and captured. Prisoners 
were taken and provisions in baggage wagons were captured. "J his was 
all our damage, though it was fearful and saddening. 

On Monday the rebels renewed the fight on the rear-guard, and were 
again repulsed with loss of whole brigades of rebel prisoners and of 
twenty six of their guns. On Tuesday the reserve of the enemy marched 
from Richmond, fresh and untired, with the expectation of getting into 
the rear of our exhausted troops ; but they were met and held until our 
gun-boats, the G-dena and the Monitor^ opened a terrific fire, which sent 
the frightened rebels hurly skurly back to Richmond. Thus ended the 
foiled attempts to outgeneral McClellan. [Cheers.] Thus terminated 
the rebel efforts to beat our brave soldiers of the Army of the Potomac. 
[Cheers. J It is worth noticing, that the correspondent of the New-York 
Tribune relates that he was on board of the Galena when McClellan 
arri\ed on board from a skiff", and posted the gun-boat by his own direc- 
tions to her commander; that then he went aboard of the Monitor, and 
pointed out the proper position for that champion to take. [Cheers.] 
It was a spectacle like that of Perry passing from the Lawrence to the 
Niagara, and plucking victory from a competent foe by the force of 
mind and valor. It was the shots from these, his naval coadjutors, which 
gave the finishing blow to the rebels in their last assault, and sent them 
back to their rebel capital. [Cheers for McClellan.] 

Now, fellow-citizens, does all this wear the aspect of McClellan's 
defeat, or of McClellan's victories? The rebels were foiled, and the 
Union Army was successful. And I claim the series of victories, costly 
as they were, to McClellan and his army, and so will history record her 
judgment. Why, let me put the case in a familiar way ; suppose that 
you were going over the ferry to Brooklyn, Avhere two or three rowdies 
encountered you, and swore that you should not go ; they attack you, 
and you knock them down, one after another, and go on your way, and 
reach the other side as you intended. Who conquered? Who got tiie 
victory? Will you say that you were defeated, because your clothes 
were torn and your nose bloody, or even if your arm were broken and 
your purse gone ? 



.ID 

These are the casualties of the occasion. You were not the conquered, 
but the victors. This is a plain and homely, but true illustration, of 
the seven days' battle of McClellan. The enemy assailed him three to 
one, and he drove them oft". [Cheers.] Fellow-citizens, I knew most of 
the leaders of this rebellion at West Point and in the army. And amoni>; 
them are men, whom, before the rebellion, I have known as gentlemen ; 
but the Bible says, that " Rebellion is as witchcraft ; " Samuel uttered this 
divine condemnation to Saul, and when Saul became a rebel, his very 
nature was, as by witchcraft, changed, and so now again, has this rebel- 
lion changed those whom I once recognized as friends and gentlemen. 
They have become our foes, and, in their attempts to destroy the Consti- 
tution and Union and Government of the United States, they would be 
our murderers, like Saul against David. They would kill us or make us 
vassals. Shall they do this, or shall every traitor to the Constitution be 
made to feel the authority and power of the Government of the United 
States? The Army of the Totoraac must be recruited and reinforced. 
The President has called for 300,000 loyal soldiers. Shall we go to the 
army or stay at home ? Who will not ofi"er himself as a champion or a 
martyr for his country, in this crisis of constitutional liberty? Who 
will not enlist Avhen victory or death are the issues ? Who will not go 
to the altar, like Isaac, to be priest or sacrifice, as God may appoint, and 
win an imperishable name on the muster-roll of a nation's heroes ? Let 
the example of Mr, Seward's son be an example to us. The Secretary of 
State, in his letter just now read, tells you that he has offered his young- 
est son to the service of his country, as a private in one of the military 
organizations of New York. [Prolonged and enthusiastic applause.] 

SPEECH OP PETER COOPER. 

In response to a call from the IMeeting, Peter Cooper came 
forward and said : — 

Fellow-Citizens, — I can assure you that nothing could give me greater 
pleasure than to be able to say a word, if possible, that would awake the 
slumbering energies of the nation to the magnitude of the war in which 
we are engaged. [Cheers.] We are contending with an enemy not 
only determined on our destruction as a nation, but an enemy that is 
determined to build on our ruins a government with all its power devoted 
to maintain, extend, and perpetuate a system in itself revolting to all the 
best feelings of humanity. An institution that enables thousands to sell 
their own children into hopeless bondage, [A voice — " That's so ! I have 
seen it."] Shall it succeed ? [Cries of " No ! No ! "] You say no, and I 
unite with you and say no, also. We cannot allow it to succeed. We 
should spend our lives, our jjroperty and leave the land a desolation 
before such an institution should triumph over the free people of this 
country. [Applause.] 

I know, my friends, tliat will be the feeling when the people wake up 
to the importance of the present occasion ; and I believe the time has 
now come that we begin to see that thousands, nay millions, are sighing 
to help us, but are afraid because they say we are lighting to restore an 
institution that will keep them in perpetual bondage. 



56 

I trust the day has come when vie sliall unbind the heavy burdens and 
let the captives go tree — when we sliall meet these men who are ready to 
unite and aid us, and give us the help we need. [Cheers.] A help that 
will take from the rebels the power on which they depend for digging 
their trenches, plowing their fields, raising their crops, and leaving 
them leisure to play upon us the game of war. Shall it be so any 
longer ? I trust it shall not. Let us unite and do what we can to con- 
vince the people of the South, that their best interests call for the freedom 
of their slaves, and not only of their slaves, but the freedom of the 
Avliite people of the South from the terrible thralldom, the terrible 
dependence they are in, when they allow themselves to rely on a coerced 
and uncompensated labor. [Cheers.] Let us unite in an effort to sustain 
the Government by every means in our power, and get the army built 
up in the shortest possible time, with the best men and arms that can be 
found. [Enthusiastic applause.] 

The proceedings at tins stand were tlien closed. 



OFFICERS. 

STAND No. il. 

Under charge of Comniitiee oC Arran<>enients, 
FEPEK MITCHELL, CHARLES GOULD. 

President. 

HAMILTON FISH, Presided of Union Dcfeme CimmiUn. 



Vice-Presidents. 



William B. Astor. 
.Moses H. Crinnell, 
AVilliam C. Bryant, 
Luther Bradish, 
James Lenox, 
Joseph Sampson, 
Charles H. Marshall, 
George Bancroft, 
Robert Ray, 
Samuel B. Ruggles, 
Peter Cooper, 
C. R. Robert, 
Henry W. Bellows, 
]\Ierritt Trimble, 
James W. Beeknu^n, 
Alexander T. Stewart, 
Richard M. Blatchford, 
Thomas Tileston, 
George T. Adee, 
John Cotton Smith, 
Frederic Depeyster, 
Cyrus Curtiss, 
William Aymar, 
Henry L. Pierson, 
F. S. Winston, 
Adrian Iselin, 
George T. Strong, 
James L. Morris, 
Benj. D. Silliman, 
Frederick G. Foster, 
William A. Darling, 
Charles A. Heckscher, 
Japliet Bishop, 
Hugo Wesendonck, 
A. C. Richards, 
Charles B. Hofthian, 



Lorillard Spencer, 
George S. Bobbins, 
James Pimnett, 
William Post, 
A. L. Robertson, 
AVilliam I3arton, 
Richard Warren, 
Otis I). Swan, 
Elias Wade, Jr., 
0. D. F. Grant, 
Theodore Polhemus, 
Anthony S. Hope, 
William Allen Butler, 
Edward A. Bibby, 
Jacob Hayes, 
William F. Cary, 
James Rcnwick, 
Samuel M. Fox, 
J. Butler AVright, 
Frederick Sheldon, 
Caleb Barstow, 
Frederick Prime, 
J. B. Giraud Foster, 
James B. Murray, 
Alexander Hamilton, 
Wm. P. p]sterbrook, 
Alexander S. Leonard, 
John Trenor, 
William Black, 
Edmund Schermerhorn, 
David S. Coddington, 
George Donalson, 
Franklin H. Delano, 
Jonathan Thorne, 
John Sedgwick, 
Robert J. Livingston. 



58 



I'hilctus IT. Holt, 
Samuel 'V. IJiiil^haiii, 
'riionms M. Adriance, 
V. Eonisen Strong, 
Isaac Gretn Pearson, 
Adam Norric, 
Jolin Ward, 
"William C. Rhinelander, 
Israel Corse, 
'jieorge W. Blunt, 
Francis B. Nicol, 
Daniel H. Turner, 



Henry Drislcr, 
Wickliam Hotl'man, 
Albert R. Gallatin, 
Horace Green, 
Howard Potter, 
Lorenzo Draper, 
James A. Briggs, 
James M. Cross, 
Henry A. Smythe, 
Thomas Addis Emmet, 
Herman R. LeRoy, 
0. E. Detmold. 



Secretaries. 



Frank Moore, 
John H. White, 
Sheppard Gaudy, 
George AY. Ogston, 
Samuel Blatchford, 
James F. Ruggies, 
Frank W. Ballard, 
John Nesbitt, 
Robert Cutting, 
William S. (Chamberlain, 
William Bibby 
Oliver King, 
Samuel Curtis, 



Henry R. Benkard, 
Charles C. Nott, 
Charles Neilson, 
J. Winthrop Chanler, 
William J. Emmet, 
Henry A. Oakley, 
Charles Goodhue. 
George B. Waldron, 
Elliot F. Shepard, 
Robert Benson, Jr., 
Nathaniel Prime, 
William Rhinelander. 



PROGRAMME OF PROCEEDINGS. 



STAND No. 8. 

Salutes of Artillery by Anthon Light Battery and by 
tlie Workmen employed by Hexry Brewster & Co. 

1. Music — Grand Marcli by 

2. Peter Mitchell will call the meeting to order, read the call 

of the meeting, and conduct Hamilton Fish to the chair. 

8. AY. E. Dodge will read the list of Vice-Presidents and Sec- 
retaries. . 

4. Hamilton Fish, Chairman, will address the meeting. 

6. Charles Gould will read the Address adopted by the Con- 
vention of Committees. 

6. Peter Mitchell will read the Eesolutions adopted by the 

Convention of Committees. 

7. Music. 

8. Ethan Allen will deliver an Address. 

9. Music. 

10. B. D. Hitchcock will deliver an address. 

11. Music. 

12. John A. King, 

13. Music. 



HO 

In the absence of Hamilton Fish, who had been designated to 
preside over this stand, Charles Gould, of the Committee of 
Arrangements, was called to the Chair. 

Mr. Gp:ouge W. Bltxt read the Address. The Kesolutions 
were read by Alderman ^[ITCIIELL, and adopted unanimously. 

Weigand's band having given the " Star-Spangled Banner," the 
first speaker introduced was Mr. Ethan Allen, Assistant U. S. 
District Attorney, who spoke as follows : — 

ME. ETHAN ALLEN'S SPEECH. 

Fellow-Citizens of New-York, — Once more the tocsin sounds to 
arms, and freemen rally to the call. It is now nearly a century ago that 
mass meetings of our fathers were held in this city, to devise ways and 
means for the defence of that very flag, which to-day is given to the 
winds of Heaven, beaming defiance from every star. Fired then with the 
same spirit of freedom that kindles on this spot to-day, for the time 
throwing aside the habiliments of peace, our fathers armed themselves 
for vengeance and for war. The hutory of that war, go read it in the 
hearts of the American people ; the trials and struggles of that war, 
mark them in the tear-drop which the very allusion calls to every eye ; 
the blessings of that war, count them in the gorgeous temples of trade 
that rise everywhere around you ; the wisdom of that war, and the 
promised perpetuity of its triumphs, behold the one in our unexampled 
national prosperity, and the other in the impulses that like an electric 
flash bind heart to heart throughout this vast assemblage in the firm re- 
solve, that, cost what it may, rebellion shall go down. [Loud applause.] 

Again the American people are assembled in mass meetings through- 
out the nation, while the States once more rock in the throes of a revo- 
lution. Once more the cry to arms reverberates throughout the land ; 
but this time we war against domestic foes. Treason has raised its black 
flag near the tomb of Washington, and the Union of our States hangs 
her fate upon the bayonet and the sword. Accursed be the hand that 
would not use the bayonet — blighted be the arm that would not wield 
the sword in such a cause ! Everything that the American citizen holds 
dear hangs upon the issue of this contest. Our national honor and 
reputation demand that rebellion shall not triumph on our soil. In the 
name of our heroic dead, in the name of our numberless victories upon 
the battle-fleld, in the name of our thousand peaceful triumphs, in the 
name of our unexampled national prosperity, our Union must and shall 
be preserved. [Enthusiastic cheers.] 

Our peacefid triumphs! These are really the important victories 
which we should be jealous to guard. They are worth fighting for ; 
they are worth dying for. They are fostered and multiplied under the 
protection of tlie " Union ;" otherwise the term " Union " were but empty 
sound. Let others recount tlieir marshal glories; they shall be eclipsed 



61 

by the charity and the grace of the triumphs which have heeii acliievetl 
in peace. " Peace hatli her victories, not less renowned than War," and 
the hard-earned fruits of tliese victories rebelHon shall not take from us. 
[Cries of " No," " No," " Never."] Our peaceful triumphs ! • AVho shall 
enumerate their value to the millions yet unborn? What nation, in so 
short a time, has won so many ? On the land and on the sea, in the 
realms of science and in the world of art, we everywhere have gathered 
our honors, and have won our garlands. Upon the altars of the States 
they yet lie, fresh from the gathering, while their liappy influences fill 
the land. 

Of the importance and value of our thousand peaceful triumphs, time 
will permit me to mention only one, which is yet fresh in the memory of 
us all. It is now two years ago, when up the waters of the Potomac, 
toward the Capital, sailed the representatives of an empire till then shut 
out from intercourse with all Christian nations. In the eastern seas 
there lay an empire of islands, which hitherto had enjoyed no recpg- 
nition in the Christian world, other than its name upon the map. No 
history, so far as we know, illumined it — no ancient time-nuirk told of its 
advance, step by step, in the march of improvement. There it had 
rested for thousands of years, wrapped in the mysteries of its own ex- 
clusiveness, " gloomy, dark, peculiar." It liad been supposed to possess 
great power, and vague rumcrs had attributed to it, ingenious arts to us 
unknown. Against nearly all the world, for thousands of years, Japan 
had obstinately shut her doors. The wealth of the Christian world could 
not tempt her cupidity, the wonders of the Christian world could not 
excite her curiosity. There she lay, sullen and alone, the phenomenon 
of nations. England and France and the other powerful Governments of 
Europe had at various times tried to conquer this oriental exclusiveness, 
but the Portuguese only partially succeeded, while all the rest signally 
failed. At length, we, bearing at our masthead the glorious old 
stars and stripes, approach the mysterious portals, and seek an entrance. 
Not with cannon and implements of death do we demand admission, but 
appreciating the saying of Euripides, that 

" Resistless eloquence shall open 
The gates that steel exclude," 

we peacefully appeal to that sense of right, which is the " touch of nature 
that makes the whole world kin," and behold, the interdiction is re- 
moved, the doors of the mysterious empire fly open, and a new garland 
is woven, to crown the monument of our commercial conquests. [Loud 
applause.] 

Who shall set limit to the gain that may follow this one victory of 
peace, if our Government be perpetuated so as to gather it for the gene- 
rations? Who shall say, in an unbroken, undivided Union, that the 
opening of the ports of Japan shall not accomplish for the present era all 
that the Reformation, the art of printing, steam and the telegraph have 
done Avithin the last three hundred years? New avenues of wealth are 
thrown open, new fields are to be occupied, arts new to us, doubtless, 
are to be studied and to be Americanized, and science, perhaps, from 
that arcana of nations, has revelations to make to us, equal to anything 
which we liave ever learned before. Reciprocity bids us to exten<l what- 



62 

ever is valuable in our system of Government over this new convert to 
our national policy. Fifty millions of people there are to be enlightened ; 
the printing-press is to catch the daily thought and stamp it upon the 
page ; the magnetic wire must yet vibrate along her highways, and 
Ni])hon nmst be made to tremble to her centre, at each heart-beat of our 
ocean steamers, as they sweep through her waters or thunder round her 
island homes. [Cries of " Good," and applause.] All hail ! all hail ! to 
these children of the morning. All hail ! all hail ! to the great Republic 
of the West, that ushers them into life. From every age that has passed 
there comes a song of praise for the treaty that has been consummated. 
The buried masters of three thousand years start again to life, and march 
in solemn and in grand procession, before the eyes of these new-found 
empires. Homer with his songs, Greece with her arts, Rome with her 
legions, and America with her heroes, all come to them with the novelty 
and freshness of the newly-born. Wipe off the mould which time has 
gathered upon their tombs, and let them all come forth and answer, at 
the summons of new-born nations, that call them again to life ; wrapped 
in the winding-sheet of eighteen centuries, the fishermen of Galilee tell 
to these strangers the story of the resurrection ; clutching in their hands 
their dripping blades, the warriors recount their conquests ; and joined at 
last in harmonious brotherhood, Copernicus, with bony fingers pointing 
upward, tells to Confucius his story of the stars. [Loud and enthu- 
siastic cheering. | 

Fellow-citizens, I have spoken of but one of our many peaceful triumphs. 
In this I may have been guilty of a digression from the subject which 
calls us together ; but my aim has been to hold up our commercial con- 
quests, gained while a law-abiding, united people, as eminently worthy of 
all the sacrifice of blood and treasure that we are called upon to make, 
in order to secure their legitimate fruits. It is really our numerous vic- 
tories of peace, such as that of which I have spoken, that make us, as a 
nation, the wonder of the world. And let it be remembered that it was 
freedom, not slaver i/, that won these triumphs; it is freedom that must 
defend them. I appeal to you, shall all these peaceful honors of 
our people, shall all these hopes of the future, shall all these promised 
fruits from the struggles of the past, be swept away by the dissolution of 
the Union and the destruction of the Government? Forbid it. Almighty 
God ! Rather perish, rather a thousand times perish, the cause of the 
rebellion, and over the ruins of Slavery let peace once more resume her 
sway, and let the cannon's lips grow cold. [Vociferous cheering.] Delenda 
est Carthago, said the old Roman patriot, when gloom settled upon his 
state; the rebellion must be crushed, with the same determination say 
wo all to-day. [Applause.] The cannon that opened the fire upon Fort 
Sumter reverberated from the Penobscot to the Rocky Mountains^ and 
has called the northern lion from his lair. Down with party, sect and 
class, and up with a sentiment of unanimity when our country calls to 
arms. Massachusetts, glorious old Massachusetts, first at the cradle of 
liberty in 1776, she will be the last at the grave, if fate intends that 
grave shall ever be. Again the " bones of her sons lie mingling and 
bleaching with the soil of every State from Maine to Georgia, "and there 
they will lie forever." From her new-made graves she sends forth a 
constant prayer to Heaven; and let traitors tremble lest that prayer be 



63 

answered. New-York jiiiist not be beliind tlie Old ]iuy State. In the 
spirit world, "Warren calls to Hamilton and Ilaniilton calls back to 
Warren, that hand in hand their mortal children go on together, to fame, 
to victory, or to the grave. The hosts of the Union are already mar- 
shaled in the field ; but a call is made for more, and that call must not 
be in vain. [Cries of " No, no."] When the ranks are full, let us catch 
inspiration from the past, and under its influence go forth to conflict. 
Go call the rolls on Bemis Heights, on the plains of Monmouth, or at 
Yorktown, where the sheeted dead may rise as witness, and there pro- 
pose to your legions the dissolution of this Union, and there receive their 
answer. JNIad with frenzy, burning with indignation at the thought, all 
ablaze for vengeance upon the traitors, such will be the fury and im- 
petuosity of the onset, that all opix)sition shall be swept before them, as 
the pigniy yields to the avalanche that comes tumbling, rumbling, thun- 
dering from its Alpine home. [Loud cheering.] Let us gather at the 
tomb of Washington, and invoke his spirit to direct us in the combat. 
Rising again incarnate from the tomb, in one hand holding the same old 
flag, blackened and begrimed by the smoke of a seven years' war, with 
the other hand he points us to the foe. Up and at them. Let patriotic 
fires thrill our very souls, while immortal spirits direct our way. One 
blow, deep, effectual and forever — one crushing blow upon rebellion, in 
the name of God, Washington and the Republic. 

Three enthusiastic cheers were proposed and given with a will 
to Mr. Allen, as he concluded and took his seat. 

" Hail Columbia," by the Band. 

SPEECH OF REV. DR. HITCHCOCK. 

The Eev. Dr. Hitchcock next took his place on the stand. 
He was rather heated when he rose, and took the opportunity of 
turning the same to advantage in his remarks, which were to the 
followinsr effect : — 

o 

Fellow-Citizens, — This sun is hot, but remember that it is not so hot 
as that sun which flames upon our brethren from a Virginia sky. Nor is 
that sun, that Virginia sun, half so hot as the fire of the artillery and 
musketry which blazes around those heroes who are now figliting for our 
cause, with this motto for their guide, " A glorious victory, or death." 
Nor is that fire of battle so hot as the fire of the hate of those who are 
now in rebellion against the Government of our country, who are shed- 
ding the life-blood of our brethren, against whom they are drawn up in 
battle array. My fellow-citizens of the great city of New- York, this 
meeting reminds me of the immense gathering which took place in this 
great commercial metropolis — the first great gathering of April, 1801. 
The month is an eventful one in our American history. It has its lights 
and its shadows, it is full of mingled opposites — at one time light, and 
at another time dark. It was in this month of April that we had our 



CA 

Concord nnd our Lexiiif,4on. It was also in this month of April that we 
had the attack upon and fall of Sumter. It was in this month of April 
that our brave soldiers were beset and brutally murdered in Baltimore. 
This meeting takes place in July, and July is also notable in our history 
as the month in Avhieh the Declaration of Independence was signed. 
April is a sjjring month, July is a harv^est month. Fifteen months ago — 
in April, during the spring — we planted the seed of loyalty to the Ame- 
rican Union, and it shall bring forth a glorious harvest throughout tliis 
promising land. Let us with heart and voice, word and deed, reassure 
our brethren in the field and give the word of cheer to our armies. I call 
this meeting one of reaffirmation. We are to day to reaffirm "what we 
resolved upon fifteen mouths ago. What we planted in stormy spring is 
to be taken care of during this generous summer. What we did then 
was the result of instinct ; now it has become a deep-rooted conviction. 
It was passion which then guided us ; now it is principle. It may be 
that on the occasion of our former meeting our huzzas were louder ; but 
now I can see it in your faces, our resolutions are deeper, and when we 
now strike we shall strike as doth the lightning — once and for all. We 
to-day reaffirm our resolution to preserve the integrity of our land, our 
power, our interests, and our continent. In our uttered determinations 
then we were wiser than we knew of. We merely said it then ; we un- 
derstand it now. This continent must and shall remain united, one and 
inseparable, and must be so until the end of time. [Applause.] Tins 
is a struggle between a rebellious confederacy and our Government ; and 
what for ? Not for the vague abstraction it purports to be, but for a re- 
mote but still more important issue — the domination of this continent. 
They or we will have to rule this vast land from the St. Croix to the Rio 
Grande, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. And I say unto you, men 
of the city of New-York, shall it be we, the men of the Christian North, 
or shall it be sons of the sunny South, as they delight to call themselves, 
who are, and have proved themselves, robbers by land, and if they 
had a fleet upon the sea, would also be pirates. [Applause.] This 
is the issue, and it nmst be determined sooner or later. Citizens 
of New-York, are you men enough to say you will take the issue on 
your own shoulders, or leave it for your posterity ? Can you look 
upon your babes now resting in their cradles, and bequeath to them 
the settlement of this great question ? Will you leave it for the next 
generation to settle this question ? [Loud cries of " No, no."] It 
must be determined now or never. It can be more easily settled now 
than by any conjunction in the future. We contend for the supremacy of 
our Government, and we will do so if we have to make a Thermopylie of 
it, and defend the gate till all have fallen ; or else Ave shall have to sub- 
mit to a military despotism which would march over the bleeding corpses 
of our comrades to rule us with a rod of iron. I stand here to defend 
the glorious republican idea which has gained to us the laurels that crown 
the brow of our glorious goddess Liberty. We must defend the old 
republic, for if we fail the republicans of the Old World will lose heart 
forever. We must vindicate our republican existence, and not only vin- 
dicate it in its geographical integrity, but in its political glory — not only 
for ourselves, but for all mankind. ["Bravo," and applause.] The Ame- 
rican people have learned something during the past fifteen months. I 



65 

have been in the country among the farm-liouses where families are more 
scattered, and where one taken from tlie orio-jnally compact family circle 
is missed, not only by those who form that circle, but by their neig-hbors. 
The war in those cases has been brought home to the hearts of many. 
I have seen women stand at the doors of tbeir houses eagerly and anxiously 
waiting for the return of their wounded husbands, brothers, sons, or still 
more anxiously trying to learn some tidings of one wlio fell at Fair Oaks, 
Gaines' Mills, at White Oak Swamp, or elsewhere. Men die in the great 
city, and they are scarcely missed, except in their more immediate circle; 
but in the country the case is far different. Those are matters of deep 
thought, and the people are thinking deeper than ever. They are think- 
ing very fast. The new call is also a matter of thought, and although I 
cannot doubt that the quota of New- York will be filled, and quickly, too, 
I cannot shut my eyes to the fact that it is not responded to with that 
marked alacrity as that which characterized the former call. There must 
be a reason for this, and the Government should know it. It is not the 
fear of the adversary they have to encounter ; but it is the fear that the 
Administration will not themselves carry the war through in a proper 
manner. The men of America have pluck, and do not fear to die for 
their country. They will enlist, but there is a condition which they de- 
mand. That condition is, [with great energy,] fight, fight, fight. We 
have had play long enough, and now must have fight. Fight and with 
the right hand and not with the left, and only the little finger of that 
hand at the best. We must have fight with the right hand. [A voice, 
" With both hands."] Wait till I get through. Yes, [clenching both 
fists and stretching them out with convulsive energy,] fight ; fight with 
both hands. And that is not all. I say let all the colors fight. All. 
From the one extreme of the Caucasian white to the other extreme of 
the Caucasian black — let them all fight, and let all the people that make 
up the different and beautiful shades between these extremes fight. Let 
all the people fight. Elijah saw in the heavens the chariots of fire of the 
Lord of Hosts, Then let the rebels have iheir five hundred thousand 
men ; we have the chariots and horses of fire, and they are round about 
us. We have the spirits of those heroes of old who have gone to their 
rest. We have also the spirits of those sages and heroes who have stood 
up for us in foreign lands, or who have pined in foreign dungeons for 
contending for our rights. And all good angels are looking down upon 
us. And these Avill guide us on to victory. I say unto you, men of New- 
York, we must win, and, in the end, despite all seeming adversities, the 
right must triumph. [Enthusiastic cheering.] 

9 



OFFICERS. 



STAND No. 4. 

Under charge of Committee of Arrangements, 
JAMES W. WHITE, ROBERT H. McCURDY. 

President. 

FRANCIS LIEBER. 



Vice-Presidents. 



WiLi.iAM Curtis Noyes, 

Stewart Brown, 

Morris Ketchum, 

C. V. S. Roosevelt, 

William E. Dodge, 

Cyrus W. Field, 

William ]\I. Evarts, 

Henry E. Fierrepont, 

George Griswold, Jr., 

Wm. H. Aspinwall, 

GuLiAN C. Verplanok, 

Peter Lorillard, 

James Benkard, 

Francis Vinton, 

Francis Hall, 

Jacob A. Westervelt, 

Herman Raster, 
Thomas W. Clerke, 
James B. Nicholson, 
Marshall O. Roberts, 
Wolcott Gibbs, 
Edgar Ketchum, 
Robert L. Stuart, 
Alexander H. Stevens, 
Elijah Fisher, 
Fbederi(;k Kapp, 
Benj. Welch, Jr., 
Jame^ W. Farr, 
Charles B. Spicer, 
Don Aloxzo Cusuman, 
Henry F. Spalding, 
Simeon Baldwin, 
Georgk L. Schuyler, 
Ri(;hakd Heckscher, 
James Kearney Warren, 
William Astor, 



J. N. A. Griswold, 
Pierre V. Duflon, 
Alpheus Foues, 
David R. Jaques, 
John Ewen, 
Edward H. Ludlow, 
Robert LeRoy, 
Elliot C. Cowdin, 
Adam W. Spies, 
George F. Woodward, 
Samuel S. Sands, 
George A. Robbins, 
Francis G. Shaw, 
Robert G. Remsen, 
Stephen H. Tyng, 
Valentine Mott, 
Henry D. Sedgwick, 
David Colden Murray, 
Moses S. Beach, 
George Folsom, 
Cambridge Livingston, 
John L. Aspinwall, 
Robert Emmet, 
John D. Jones, 
C. S. Franklin, 
Henry Ford, 
J. Vj. Peters, 
Benjamin Floyd, 
Charles Pomroy, 
John Mekks, 
Parke Godwin, 
John B. Wickersham, 
John Stevenson, 
I. M. Singei!, 
Charles B. Clinch, 
Joseph Foulke, 



67 



Olahkson N. Potter, 

JOSRPH BrIDGIIAM, 

Henry B. Smith, 
Isaac Ferris, 

A. E. SiLLIMAN, 

Maunsell B. Field, 
David Dows, 
Isaac Bell, 
George S. Coe, 
C. L. Monell, 
Henry K. Bogert, 
Henry C. Murphy, 
William Hegeman, 



ElCHARD StORRS WiLLIS, 

Hamilton Bruce, 
Henry Kerk, 
Edward Carney, 
Isaac H. Bailey, 
Augustus Weissman, 
H. B. Stanton, 
Stephen Philbin, 
John R. Lawrence, 
Richard M. Hoe, 
Warren Ward, 
Christopher Williams. 



Secretaries. 



Robert B. Minturn, Jr., 
Charles E. Strong, 
Richard A. McCurdy, 
Richard L. Suydam, 
George Bruce, Jr., 
David Bishop, 
W. H. L. Barnes, 
A. j\I. Palmer, 
William Bond, 
Nathaniel Coles, 
John H. Almy, 
Cephas Brainard, 
Pierre Humbert, 



Samuel Williams, 
Maturin Drlafield, 
Benjamin W. Strong, 
Theodore Bronson, 
William B Crocker, 
Edward C. Morris, 
Henry S. Fearing, 
David Lydig, 
Byam K. Stevens, Jr., 
James Lenox Kennedy, 
A. C. Kingsland, Jr., 
George B. Satterlee, 
George Griswold Haven. 



PEOGKAMME OF PEOCEEDINGS. 



STAND NO. 4, 



Salutes of Artillery by the "Anthon Light Battery," 
and by the Workmen employed by Henry Brewster 
&;Co. 

1. Gr^^^d March, by Grafula's Grand Band. 

2. James W. White will call the meeting to order, read the 

Call of the Meeting, and conduct to the Chair, Francis 
Lieber, 

3. Egbert H. McCurdy will read the list of Yice-Presidents 

and Secretaries. 

4. The Chairman, Francis Lieber, will address the meeting, 

5. William Curtis Noyes will read the Address adopted by 

the Convention of Committees. 

6. Morris Ketchum will read the Resolutions adopted by the 

Convention of Committees. 

7. Music. 

8. L. E, Chittenden will address the meeting. 

9. Music. 

10. William Allen Butler will address the meeting. 

11. Music. 

12. W. J. A. Fuller. 

13. Music. 

14. R A. Witthaus. 



09 

The meeting was called to order by Judge James W. White, 
who read the call for the meeting, and nominated for Chairman 
Dr. Francis Lieber, who was elected with applause. 

R H. McCuRDY read the list of Vice-Presidents and Secreta- 
ries, which was adopted. 

DR. LIBBER'S REMARKS. 

Fellow-Citizens, — You have conferred on me tlie honor of presiding 
here on this important day. This is a war meeting. In the midst of a 
vast contest, in which many thousands of our brethren have ah-eady been 
slain, in which almost boundless treasures have been sacrilieed, and in 
which reverses have not failed to break in upon the list of our victories, 
the President, first called upon by the governors of loyal States, has in 
turn, called upon us to furnish new bands of fellow-citizens, to send more 
brothers, more sons, so that this odious and shameless insurrection may 
at length be quelled. Resolutions will be read to you for your acceptance, 
expressing our undiminished loyalty, our firm adhesion to the principles 
for which we have already struggled so long, and which in tliis enormous 
war we prize with patriotic fervor, as the highest civil virtues in trying 
periods — fortitude, perseverance and tenacity to the last. 

And why all this? Why this call upon the people of our city to 
take a renewed oath on the altar of our country, that we will be faithful 
and true to her, and see this war triumphantly ended, and as thoroughly 
carried on, until it be ended, as the ample means of a great nation will 
admit of. 

Fellow- citizens, near the beginning of this century, there was a pa- 
triotic German youth and noble poet, who sang and fought for the inde- 
pendence of his country, and ultimately sealed with his death on the field 
what he had nobly sung. It happened that he found a sealing-ring, on 
which was engraved an arrow, with the motto. Through. This simple 
arrow, and that brief word, inspired the youthful patriot with a poem, 
which he inscribed Through, calling on his country not to waver, but to 
rally round the standard of his country's independence, and to fight 
through to a successful end what had so nobly been begun. Is this not 
a befitting motto for us to adopt in this grave time of our war ? Perhaps 
all of us have near friends or children or brothers that have fought — 
many that have bled in that long Week's Battle ; and ought not our war- 
cry to be Through ? Ought not our policy to be Through^ through^ through ? 
[Great applause.] Let us call to our sceptered servants. Through, and 
through at once ! Let us call to our girded servants, Through ! Let 
us call, when foreigners may show a desire to interfere Avith our own 
aftairs, already sufliciently distressing — Hands ofi"; we will not listen to 
any one until we are through! [Applause.] We ought to make it the 
watchword among ourselves, and call on one another. Through ! We 
ought to call on all the young, fit to bear arms. Through, through ! ! 

Why ? Because the most sacred and dearest interests of man in his 
career on this earth are involved in this struggle — our material prosperity, 
our moral welfare, our honor, our national existence. , He that shapes 
the history of men wills us to be a nation, and modern civilization re- 
quires countries. God has given us a noble country, may be the noblest 
on earth, which we will not, and cannot, allow ourselves to be robbed of. 



70 

We will not prove false to our trust. Shall we allow ignorance and ar- 
rogance and barbarism to cut up the great map of our heaven-united 
land into miserable clippings, leaving nothing but a litter of worthless 
pieces ? [No, no ! never !] Our country, our proud country, from sea 
to sea, with her majestic rivers, or rather, with her unique river system, 
and the glorious help of the canals, with her teeming mountains, and her 
fertile fields — our country, with all her food and fuel and substance for 
shelter and clothing — our country, my friends, is the primary condition 
of our social and political existence, and, indeed, of our own American 
liberty. With all due regard for our peculiar system of States, the State 
lines are, after all, but pencil marks on the great map. They have been 
changed, and will be changed again. They are not those deep grooves 
that history furrows, as she deeply cuts the border lines of nationalities. 
Not so with our country. The lines that mark her must never be changed — 
at least, never contracted. [Applause.] 

Why ? Because a country that allows foreign governments to inter- 
fere with her domestic and national affairs — that permits foreign jealousy 
to dictate in her councils — is disgraced and ruined ; is a cripple among the 
nations — a vassal and not a freeman. Germany can furnish you with 
some warning commentaries, ever since the times of Louis the Fourteenth. 
Even a crowned head of Germany, a noble prince of a petty principality, 
told his countrymen, recently, that in modern times genuine patriotism, 
void of narrow provincialism, cannot prosper in a confined petty State, 
still less in a mere city-State. And is there no danger of foreign inter- 
ference ? There is ; even were it only for these two reasons, that Eng- 
land and France sufter greatly from our civil war, and because those two 
powers, which have always been unfriendly to the formation of a new 
united power, wnth the only exception of Italy in our own times, do not 
relish the growth of United American power. It has been openly ac- 
knowledged. 

Why ? Because we are already in the midst of a gigantic war, ex- 
clusively waged, on our part, for a great and noble idea. Such wars 
cannot be stopped at will ; as little as the tide can be bid to retire by a 
mop, as little as the Reformation could be calmed and stopped by the 
agreement of soma ecclesiastics. Can we adopt peace founded upon the 
rending of this country ? Where will you rend it? how will you keep 
peace ? Do you believe that we would have peace for a single twelve- 
month after a division, the mere thought of which makes us shudder ? 
We speak the same language, inhabit one undivided country, have the 
same literature, the same form of thoughts, the same mould of feelings, 
the same institutions, except that one deplorable one; we would daily 
and hourly influence one another, and what with their unpunished pride 
and selfishness, their maddened and confused ambition, and their en- 
thronement of gigantic error, we would not have rest, except by a total 
and unpardonable submission to them, and not even then. There is a 
law that pervades all history, because it pervades each house, that in 
the same degree as nature has destined people to live in the bonds of 
aftection and good-will, so will their quarrels be bitter, and their mutual 
irritation be grievous, when they once separate in acrimony and hostility. 
Brothers quarrel- bitterest, when they quarrel at all. We had better 
fight it out. Complete victory alone can lead to a reconcilement, and 



71 

revised views and amended feelings ; and therefore I say, Througli, 
throiigli ! [Great applause.] 

When I sa5' that Ave ought to shout this same through., in the loudest 
accents to our people fit to enlist, I must not be understood to have har- 
bored any fear that there is not a sufficient degree of patriotism in the 
breasts of our people. Far from it. Never has a people shown itself 
more patriotic, more patient and forbearing, more ready. 

It happens that this very morning I received a letter from a distin- 
guished lawyer and legislator — a true Union man — in St. Louis, Missouri, 
and in that letter there is a passing passage which, (if you will permit me 
to read it,) you will perceive chimes in with the theme which occupies our 
attention now. He says : 

" That among those best informed no apprehension is felt for the new 
call for volunteers. Governor Gamble has received more than fifty letters, 
some before, some since the call, from men in all parts of this State, 
(Missouri,) asking authority to recruit companies, regiments, and in one 
case, a brigade — the last from an officer just recovered from a wound, 
who is confident of raising it. In Illinois I hear of the same spirit ; the 
only thing which may for a while check rapid enlistments, being the 
abundant harvest now being gathered." [Cheers.] 

So far my Missouri friend. But there is another thing that may 
temporarily interfere, or at least son]ewhat retard the desired enlistment. 
The call for recruits is comparatively a small one. The President, you 
know, calls for three hundred thousand men. This is, in fact, a large 
number of men, but, comparatively speaking, considering the population 
of the North, it is a small number. Only about fifty thousand are re- 
quired from this State. Now who doubts if there had been a necessity 
for the President to call for the services of every one who can shoulder a 
musket, that the people would rush en masse, in response to the call ? 
But tvhen a limited number is required and called for, many of the fifty 
thousand who are wanted, ai'e disposed to say, "I need not volun- 
teer ; my services will not be required, for my neighbor will go." For 
that reason I am inclined to believe that we ought to resort to the 
drafting law. I know that does not sound well to the ears of the 
Americans, because drafting has been made use of by despotic govern- 
ments, and has been resorted to in the South, by what I have not the 
least doubt is a despotic government. But drafting is not necessarily a 
despotic measure. The advantage of it would be, that it would make 
recruiting and enlisting more regular. If the Government should adopt 
such a measure, I think it would work well. Drafting, too, Avould touch 
the wealthy idlers, at least so far as to make them contribute a round 
sum for a substitute, if they should insist upon thrusting away the sword 
which their country olTers them, and decline the honor to fight for their 
imperiled country. At any rate, as men are wanted speedily, the adop- 
tion of this system would give us the men immediately, while the small 
number called for, and the approaching harvest, may have a tendency to 
prevent the rush of young men which would otherwise take place. 

Fellow-citizens, I have spoken a longer time than is appropriate for 
the initiatory remarks of a presiding officer ; but who can help it, in times 
like these, on themes like ours I 

The declaration and resolutions will now be read to you. 

Dr. LlEBER sat clown amid prolonged applause. 



72 

The Address was then read bj W. J. A. Fuller, and the 
Eesolutioxs by Francis Ketchum, and they were adopted 
with unanimity and cheers. 

SPEECH OF L. E. CHITTENDEN. 

Fellow-Citizkns, — I have taken myself out of the changeless routine 
of the Treasury Department, in Washington, and have come here hoping 
to find myself among a live people. [A voice, " You will."] Yes, I 
hope there is a people here alive to the necessities of the present 
moment. Fellow-citizens, the voice of sixteen months of war, tells us in 
tones that must he heeded, that thi-: time for talking has passed ; that 
the time has come, when it is the duty of every citizen of a loyal 
State, to offer his services to the Government in whatever capacity they 
may be most available. If I had not otfered mine before I came here, I 
would not appear before you to-day. [Applause.] I am so full of this 
subject, that I do not like to trust myself to talk about it. I come from a 
city, and that city the capital of this nation, in which we were cut off" 
for a week from communication with you, by traitors — where barricaded 
corridors, forts, and earthworks, spoke eloquently of attacks impending 
from an armed enemy» This was a long year ago, and yet, after all the 
preparation, after all the expense which that year has witnessed, it is 
not eight weeks smce loyal men were alarmed for the safety of that very 
city ! We who live in close proximity to the enemy, nay, with the 
minions of that enemy by hundreds among us, appreciate the dangers by 
which we are surrounded. Men of New-York, I wish for one short hour 
you could be made to realize the necessity which this moment presses on 
you. Do you consider this Government worth preserving ? [Cries of 
Yes ! Yes !] Is this free Republic, planted by your ancestors, nourished, 
by their blood, left to you as their richest legacy, worth preserving^ Do 
you feel, that you, your wives, your children, have an interest in it which 
ought to be dearer than their lives ? [Loud cries of " Yes."] Yes, you do. 
Then let me tell you, that perhaps the day may be approaching, it may 
be near, when every one of you who can shoulder a musket or draw a 
sabre, will be obliged to do it if this nation is to live. 

Gentlemen, the South went into this war with a purpose. [A voice, 
"That's so."J They have never debated questions about which our 
Congress and our Government have wasted so much time. These rebels 
declared at first, " We propose to overthrow your Government, to utterly 
destroy it." They began by confiscating every dollar of debts owed by 
Southern men to the North. They followed it up by imprisoning every 
man within their reach who was in sympathy with the Union and the 
Government which we inherited from Washington and the Fathers of the 
Republic ; not only that, but they said to us in effect, " We propose to 
fight you, to take your property, to destroy your lives. To accomplish 
this, we will use every means within our grasp ; we will use Indian savages 
as our allies ; we will tear open the graves of your dead, and make mer- 
chandise of the bones from which the worms have not yet stripped 
the uncorrupted flesh ; we will go into battle with the ' no quarter ' cry of 
the red-handed barbarian upon our lips, and the black flag of the pirate 
waving over our heads." Such ideas as these fired the Southern heart 
sixteen months ago when they fired the first gun at Fort Sumter, and the 



78 

history of the times tells how well they have carried them into practice. 
What have we been doinjr all this time ! We have been treatino- these 
gentlemen with the most distinguished consideration. [A voice, "That's 
so."] We could not confiscate their property ! Oh, no ! Nothing but 
a life interest iti it ! All the rest we are bound under the Constitution 
to protect. But, gentlemen, it is no pleasure to me, it cannot be to any 
one, to dwell upon the policy which we have pursued since the rebellion 
broke out. Out of it stands patent and undisguised, this great, this iujport- 
ant, this, to many a household, solemn fact — that the soil of i-ebel States has 
been crimsoned with the blood of a hundred and twenty-five thousand 
brave and loyal men, and still rebellion is as defiant as ever. Has 
not this gone far enough? [Loud cries of "Yes, yes!"] Has not 
the time come to declare war^ and a vigorous war against the South ! 
War with all its consequences to persons and to property ? [" Yes, yes !" 
and tremendous cheers.] Yes, and would to Heaven the voice with 
which you speak it, might reach the Congress and the Cabinet which 
just now need encouragement like that! 

At this moment a procession of sailors with bands and banners 
passed by. It was composed of ship -carpenters from the Navy 
Yard, and the enthusiasm increased when three rousing cheers 
were given for tlie Navy. The scene was a splendid one as they 
marched round the Square. 

Mr. Chittenden continued : 

This is no time for fault-finding or complaint. I care not, I do not ask, who 
has been responsible for the policy upon which the war has been conducted. 
We have tried it — it has failed, and is it not high time to change it ? [Loud 
cries of " Yes !"] Let us have no more protection of the persons or the 
property of disloyal men. I have met officers of our army from the 
valley of the Shenandoah who drew a picture of the vigorous manner in 
which the property of rebels there was guarded. These men were in the 
Southern army — all of them. Their women derided and abused Union 
soldiers. Sick men lay in miserable hovels and died there, while splendid 
residences of rebel owners stood close by. A soldier could not take so 
much as a chicken without being punished for it. By and by Stonewall 
Jackson sweeps up the valley with an overwhelming force, and our retreat- 
ing troops are shot down from the windows of the very houses they 
have saved from destruction. [A voice, "Destroy the inhabitants."] 
Gentlemen, I assert that it is time to proclaim to every Winchester in 
the so-called Southern Confederacy, that there shall not be left one article 
above ground in such a town, that fire can consume ! [Great enthusiasm.] 
Let our policy be every piece of property belonging to a rebel that will do a 
Union man good, take it ; if it won't do him any good, burn it. [Tremen- 
dous cheers and cries of " That's the talk."] Gentlemen, we have been 
fighting the rebels and Providence, too. That is an unequal warfare. 
The slavery question lies at the bottom of the whole. That was the 
cause of this rebellion, we all know. [Cheers, and cries of " That's so."] 
I believe it is one of the <iternal decrees of Providence, that with this 
war slavery in this republic shall die. [Loud cheering.] When the 

10 



74 

North accepts this truth, and goes into the war imderstanding it, and pre- 
pared to carry it out, then disaster and disgrace will cease to attend our 
anns. Then, and not till then, shall we be successful. 

I have no special admiration for the negro, as all know wlio know me. 
But the negro is a great tact in tliis contest, and we cannot get rid of 
him if we w-ould. Now, I Avould treat him in this connection as I would 
treat any other person or thing. Is he of use to the enemy ? Take him 
away ! Can he be made use of to our men? Let them use him ! Why 
all this idle sensitiveness on account of the negro 'i lie can dig a ditch ; 
he can build an earthwork; he can do a thousand things which wear out 
the lives of your soldiers, better than they. Let him do them ! My 
doctrine is to put this whole subject under the control of the commanders 
of our armies. They understand it better than you or I. Do not hamper 
them with restrictions or conditions. Only let this fact be thundered into 
the ears of every disloyal man North or South. There is no law, there 
is no officer, civil or military, which will aid a rebel to recapture his 
slave. [Cries of good, and cheers.] The armies of the Union are not 
slave hunters, [Cheers,] and the slave of a rebel master who has per- 
formed one act in the service of the Government, and in putting down 
this rebellion, is from that moment a free man, and the strong arm 
of the nation shall crush the traitor who seeks again to enslave him. 
[Cheers.] 

We are told now that another element is to enter into this war. 
Rumors are rife of foreign intervention. [Cries of "Let them come."] So 
say I. It is by no grace or favor of European monarchies, and of 
England especially, that this nation lives. We expect England to strike 
us just when and where we are weakest. She would not be true to 
herself or her history if she did not. I do not undervalue the importance 
of foreign intervention. I do not know but some such event is needed to 
rouse the North, and make her put forth her strength Let England and 
France now attack us, and the North would be electrified. That English 
or French regiment is not raised, nor ever will be, that can reach a point 
twenty miles inland in any Northern State. There is not a stone by the 
roadside that would not blush for itself, if it had not behind it a true 
man and a trusty rifle in such an event. [Loud cheering ] 

Mr Chittenden complimented our generals, but insisted that there was 
a defect somewhere in the management of this war. We were thirty 
millions of people against four, and yet upon every important battle- 
field the forces of the rebels had outnumbered ours — in the last battles 
before Richmond, two to one. The North must go into the field with 
the same energy and numbers as the South. General Pope had announced 
the true theory of war. Adopt the policy his orders inaugurate. We 
have had too much of tiiat style ot war which is always looking for 
lines of defence and ways of retreat. Let us look only at what line of 
defence the rebels have, that we may march upon it. Let us observe 
their line of retreat for there lies our way. Subsist our armies on the 
enemy. Pay our troops from the gold of the enemy. Have done with 
permanent stores, with supply trains and baggage transportation. The 
views of such men as Pope must now control our armies ; then will the 
war be carried on in earnest, and then will it be successful. 

lie concluded amid applause. 



SPEECH OF WILLIAM ALLEX BUTLER. 

Mr. William Allen Buti.er was next introduced bj the Chair- 



man. 



Fellow-Citizens, — This is a nieetine: for business. We are not here, 
on a gala day, to hear ourselves talk, but to act in a great crisis. 
[Cheers.] We have heard, from the speaker who preceded me, what 
we have heard before, once and ag-ain, that the capital is in dano-er. 
The appeal now made to us by the Government is not a new one. We 
have responded to it before. If I am asked how we have responded, I 
point to the gallant Seventh, I point to the seventy-two regiments which 
have been organized and equipped in the Empire City since the out- 
break of the rebellion. [Cheers.] I point to Wall-street and its banks. 
I point to every citizen of every class and country, from the ])i-ivate in 
the Sixty-ninth [loud cheers] to the men of largest wealth and influence, 
and I say that to every sumnmns of duty New- York has given a prompt 
and a noble response. More than twelve months ago, around this veiy 
Square, at the same hour as on this day, we met for a like purpose. Not 
far from the spot where I am now speaking to you, a man stood up and 
spoke these words, "This rebellion must be "put down. It may take 
seventy thousand men. What then? We have them. It may take 
seven hundred thousand men. What then ? We have them." These 
were the words of Colonel Baker. [Cheers.] 

He fell at Ball's Bluft', the victim, if not of military treason, of military 
incompetency He is gone — we are here. The seventy thousand men 
are gone. Six hundred thousand men have been given, but the rebellion 
is not put down. The question for us to-day is, not whose fault is it. 
The simple question is, shall it be put down ? [Cries of " Yes !"] We 
are not here to criticise or to blame, but to ask ourselves what is our in- 
dividual duty. What is your duty — what is mine ? What will you do ? 
[Cries of " x\ll we can."] What will I do ? I reply, every man of us, 
who can go in person, should go at once. If a man cannot go himself 
let him get his neighbor to go. If he can neither go himself nor send 
his neighbor, let him give what he can in aiding others to go. Let every 
^lan give; the rich from their abundance, the poor from their toil. This 
is our part. We may have our views and our preferences, but this is not 
the time for them. This rebellion will never be subdued unless we re- 
spond as we ought to, to this new call to duty. Will you do it ? [" Yes !"] 

As for the Government, the policy it needs is summed up in the siugle 
word— fight. ["That's it."] I would say this to Abraham Lincoln, and 
to every general and every man in the field Fight with every weapon 
and use every means of success. As our armies advance, every man, who 
is a friend, should be welcomed, whatever his condition or color. [Cheers.] 
If he can dig, give him a pick. If he can fight, give him a musket. 
Take aid wherever we can get it. I read yesterday that James Buchanan 
had given llOO as a contribution to the sick and wounded Pennsylvania 
volunteers ! Even his money I would take. [Laughter and cheers.] It 
may help to smooth the pillow or stanch the wound of some brave i'ellow 
who has fallen in the eftbrt to redress the wrongs his treachery inflicted. 
Let the Government pursue this plain policy, and let every man sustain 
it by all the means in his power, and with God's blessing on our arms we 
are as certain to succeed as to-day's sun is sure to set. [Loud applause.] 



THE YOUNG MEN'S MEETING. 



STAND No. r,. 



This stand was under the auspices of Committees of the Mer- 
cantile Library Association, and the Young Men's Christian As- 
sociation. 

These bodies not being represented in the Convention of Com- 
mittees, but at a late hour expressing a desire to participate in 
the great loyal demonstration, were invited to do so. The pro- 
ceedings on this stand were conducted by the young men without 
interference fi'om the General ('ommittee of Management. 

Benj. F. Manierre called the meeting to order and introduced, 
as presiding officer, Major-General John C. Fremont, who came 
forward amid great applause, and called upon the Kev. Joseph 
T. DuRYEA to commence the exercises with prayer. 

the prayer. 

• 

God our Heavenly Father, the God of our fathers, and our God. We look 
tip to Thee at the beginning of this meeting for Thy presence. We acknowledge 
Thee to be the Lord. We acknowledge Thee to be the God of the whole earth. 
Our nation is dependent upon Thee, and from Thee we receive our national 
existence. Secure us in these our times of peril, and unite all the hearts of this 
great people with the sentiments of purpose, and of ardor, and zeal. Concentrate 
all the powers and resources of this country to our salvation from the enemy 
which threatens our national existence. O God, fill the hearts of the young with 
the power of the spirit of self-sacrifice, and let not one of us withhold our gifts 
and our powers, and influence, or our children, from this cause, which may "give 
to us Liberty, and benefit the race of mankind. We pray that Tliou wilt bless 
the President of the United States, and all who have authority under him, giving 
them wisdom, giving them courage, singleness of purpo.se, and innocence of heart. 
May the foreign nations of the earth understand, that our single aim is to re- 
move the enemy before us, and reunite all parts of the land under the control of 
one Government. We pray that thou wilt bless the army on the field, the 
officers who are now present, and those who in our hospitals, are on the bed of 
sickness. Give courage to them, and accept us all for Jesus Christ's sake. 
Amen! 



i I 



Mr. Frank W. Ballard read the list of Vice-Presidents, as 
follows : — 

Vice-Presidents. 



Hon. Bknj F. Manierre, 
Frkderick C. Wagner, 
Samuel W. Stebbins, 
A. D. F. Randolph, 
Frank W. Ballard, 
Erasmus Sterling, 
A. J. H. Duganne, 
George T. Hope, 
E. Delafield Smith, 
Vincent Colyer, 
Stewart L. Woodford, 
Cephas Braixerd, 
Charles Osgood, 
John Crerar, 
George C. Wood, 
Wm. H. Wickham. 
James White, 
Charles F. Allen, 
Harvey H. Woods, 
William A. iNIarten. 
Rev. A. H. Burlingham, 
Henry J. Armstrong, 
Willard Harvey, 
John K. Myers, 
Henry B. Hyde, 
Philip Frankenheimer, 
Trkadwell Ketchum, 
Richard S. Storrs. 
Capt. Charles C. Nott, 
John M. Letts, 
Charles S. Messinger, 
Rev. Joseph T. Duryea, 
Thaddeus B. Wakeman, 
J. EvARTS Tracy, 
Austin Leake, 
Mark Hoyt, 



E. C. Johnson. 
Dexter A. FLwvklxs, 
George 11. Mathews, 
Charles T. Kodgers, 
Willi/ m M. P'ranklin, 
Col. James Faikman, 
James W. Newton, 
Caleb B. Knevals, 
Rev. Chauncey Murray, 
George W. Clark k, 
James G. Holden, 
Stephen H. Tyng, Jr , 
Capt. Charles A. Moore, 
Joseph W. Lester, 
Henry Beeny, 
Col. James McKave, 
Edward Colgate, 
Leonard D. White, 
Frederick Olmstead, 
Rev. H. B. Ridgway. 
Col. James W. Savage, 
Epes E. Kllery, 
Henry Wilso.n, 
Rev. T. Ralston Smith, 
Austin Abbott, 
Lieut. Thomas L. Thornell, 
Capt. A. V. Meeks, 
D. Willis James, 
W. B. Roberts, 
Robert Colby, 
Samuel S. Constant, 
Charles A. Stetson, Jr., 
Alex. Proudfoot, 
D. H. Gildersleeve, 
William Hague, 



Mr. Howard then read the following- list of Secretaries 



Secretaries. 



S. Hastings Grant, 
D. S. Riddle, 
Charles Nordhoff, 
James L. Hastie, 
Wm. W. Hague, 
Lieut. B. T. Marten, 
A. K. MacMillan, 
R. M. Strebeigh, 
Richard Vallant, 
Robt. McBurney, 
Frederick W. Downer, 
W. S. Mathews, 
David Drake, 
Yeranus Morse, M. D., 
Charles H. Swords, 
Danl. W. Berdan, 
Thaddeus V. Taker. 



Charles Nettleton, 
Edward P. Morris, 
Jamks Ward S.mythe, 

E. P. TiBBALS, 

James S. Stearns, 
Edward A. Mann, 
Charles E. Wilbur, 
J. Howard, 
Jno. Henry Hall, 
Oeter M. Myers, 
O. V. Coffin. 
William D. Jones, 
Manton Marble, 
Hiram Calkins, 
Francis A. Hall. 
T. G. Shearman. 
James McGee. 



78 

GEN. FREMONT'S SPEECH. 

Gen. Fremont then rose, amid deafening applause. He said : — 

It is lianlU' necessan' to say tliat tliis frrpat asseml)la<»'e lias been called to con- 
siilcr tilt' situation of the country, witli the object of adoptinp: such measures as 
will enable yon to re-pond most immediately and most effectively to the Presi- 
dent's call for troops. But at the same time it, is expected that this occasion 
will be used for such an expression of your feelings and opinions as will satisfy 
the country, that the enthusiasm which characterized your meeting held here last 
year, as now, has become a settled resolve, and that it is not in the ideas or pos- 
sibilities of the day that you should consent to a dismemberment of your national 
territory. [Loud cheers, and cries of " Never,"] 'I'he people have realized that 
a decisive struggle, which would tax their utmost energies, is now to come, and 
that u]ion the issne of this struggle depends the life of the nation. [Immense ap- 
plause.] The South has resolved itself into a great army, to the support of 
which all its indu-trial energies and resources are directed. You, too, will find 
it necessary to call into immediate activity your immense resources to meet the 
emergency. [Cheers.] For a brief time now war nmst be the business of the 
nation. [Cheers.] ^ ou must show your soldiers that they have not only your 
admiration and gratitude for the services they have rendered to you, but that 
they can rely upon your cordial and prompt support, and that they, too, have 
their great reserves in the masses of the people. [Cheers.] By this expression 
the Executive will feel assured of an intelligent, harmonious and efiFective co- 
operation, and foreign Governments will recognize that we intend to maintain 
our historic place in the family of nations, at the head of the great democratic 
idea, [cheers,] and that for the sake of liberty we are resolved to maintain this 
Union. [Loud cheers.] The men chosen to address you to-day, are among 
those in whom you are accustomed to place confidence, and whose opinions on 
these subjects more or less reflect your own. [Immense applause.] I will now 
introduce to you other speakers. 

Dr. EuFUS W. Clark was tlien introduced. 

SPEECH OF EEV. RUFUS W. CLARK, D. D. 

Mr. President and Fetxow^-Citizrns.^I shall take my text on this occasion 
from one of the books of Daniel — not Daniel the prophet, but Daniel Webster. 
[Laugliter.] For he has somewhere said or written this noble sentiment. ' Liberty 
and Union, one and inseparable, now and forever." [Cheers.] The Union is 
represented by the vast concourse gathered around me. embracing men of all 
political parties and creeds. Liberty is represented in the person of General 
Fremont, who presides on this occasion. [Tremendous cheers ] And the pledge 
that they shall be one and inseparable floats over our heads in the star-spangled 
banner. 

1 remember that very early in the struggle, somewhere down South, th'7 had 
a funeral, and they took the old flag, and with mock solemnity, buried it ; and 
they su])posed that was the last of the American flag. But, gentlemen, I believe in 
the (h)etrine of the resurrection, [apf)lause] ; and I believe that the sacred emblem 
of our national rights and honor, even from that soil, cursed with rebellion to-day, 
will rise again and ])roudly float over that and every other defiant State, and 
represent in the future — as it has in the past — a united, prosperous and happy 
people. 

The incident reminds me of an ignorant politician, who was sent by his neigh- 
bors to an adjoining county to ascertain what a tax was for, that had been levied. 
He was told that it was to promote the navy and prevent an insurrection. On 
returning home he was asked if he had ascertained what the tax was for. " Oh, 
yes," said he, " it is to promote knavery and prevent the resurrection." [Great 



79 

lau-^hter.] I liavo no doubt but tliat the taxes at the South will iH'omote kunvety, 
but they will not prevent the resumiction oF that flao- around which we rally to- 
day, and to the maintenance of which we renewedly consLcrate our lives, our 
fortunes, and our sacred honor. [Cheers.] 

But. fellow-citizens, the hour is solenni. We meet at a momentous crisis in 
our national history. 'I'lie republic is in danger. 'I'his cnlos.sal and iniquitous 
rebellion must be met ; it must be irrajipled with and crushed now. 1 am not 
here to appeal to your passions. 1 do not stand before this niiijhty p:atherin<r of 
American citizens simply to make a speech. I am here to kindle anew tht! fire 
of your patriotism : to awaken, if possible, an increased energy and devotion to 
the cause so clear to our hearts ; the cause that embraces the interests of civili- 
zation, human liberty, and the progress of .society in the arts, education, and n;- 
ligion. I am here to urge you to rally to the call of our noble ['resident, and to 
join the hosts already in the field, wlio are doing their utmost to roll back the 
tide of rebellion, and preserve the precious institutions bequeathed to us by our 
fathers. [Applause.] 

In this struggle, we aim, first, at the security of our national existence. We 
desire to live among the nations of the earth, and God liel|)ing us, we will main- 
tain the Republic against all the opposition, domestic or foreign, that may be 
brought to bear against us. [Immense applause.] IS'ot a few persons in Kurope, 
especially in England, have blamed us for this. We have l)een censured for de- 
siring to exist, and for not quietly acquiescing in the dismemberment of our nation. 
The people of England have declared that our republican institutions were a 
failure. [A voice in tlie crowd, •' They lie."] Yes, those who say it do lie ; and 
they will have to lie quietly until we can attend to their sneers and threats. I 
had supposed, until recently, that Pliigland was distinguished for her civilization, 
her intense humanity, and devotion to the doctrine of human rights. I had sup- 
posed that her statesmen and leaders of public opinion were in favor of cultivat- 
ing peaceful relations with the other powers of the earth ; and, surely, we have 
done nothing to provoke her enmity. Rather, we have done all in our ])ower to 
maintain a cordial and generous Iriendship. We have bestowed upon her authors 
and eminent men, who have visited our shores, every mark of attention. Some 
years ago, when her Irish citizens were starving, we ladened our ships of war 
with provisions for their relief, and gladly gave of our abundance to the needy. 
When a lost British ship, in the Arctic regions, was found by an American cap- 
tain, she was brought to one of our ports, carefully and thoroughly refitted, 
and returned to the Queen as an expression of our good-will and respect for her 
administration. And how recently these streets were thronged by our enthusi- 
astic citizens, to do honor to the young Prince of Wales, the representative of 
the British throne. No demonstration could have been more marked or sincere ; 
none could have sprung from purer feelings, a loftier sentiment than that which 
greeted the son of the Queen. And now, in the hour of our embarrassment and 
peril, what return do we receive from that people ? Where are their sympathies, 
as expressed through th?ir public press? Should the child of royalty again visit 
us and pass through our streets, I apprehend that we should allow him to go on 
his way in silence, and no more waste our attentions upon a government incapa- 
ble of appreciating an act of pure and generous national fViendship. And we 
shall ask neither of England or of any other nation on the globe, the privilege of 
existing ; and when the pernicious traitors at home are annihilated, I believe that 
we shall have leism'C and ability to see that we are not interfered with by the 
nations of Europe. [Immense cheers.] 

Fellow-citizens, we are here also to maintain our Government. What is (xov- 
ernment? It is the sentiments of the whole community embodied in laws, wliich 
certain officers are selected to execute. The (Government is created to protect 
property, regulate the intercourse and relations of citizens, and defend human 
life. AVithout a Govermnent, there can be no such thing as property — that is, 
the right of possession. In a savage state, no man can hold land, houses or mer- 
chandise, for there is no centralized authority to enforce his claims, or protect 



80 

his rights. And the man who rebels against a just, good Government, does all 
in bis power to weaken j'our hold npon your property, and reduce society to a con- 
dition of barbarism. He detln-oned order and law, and inaugurates insecurity 
and anarchy. 

Government also exists to protect human liberty and life. The man, there- 
fore, who strikes a blow at the Government, labors to destroy that protection. 
He is the foe of society. Rebellion is national suicide, and no punishment can 
be too great for those who have plotted the destruction of such a Government as 
ours, and who seek the destruction of a Republic that has given happiness and 
prosperity to so many millions of freemen. [Cheers.] 

Gentlemen, we are here also to preserve and perpetuate the American Union. 
Now this Union was not created by a compact of the States. 'I'he idea of State 
sovereignty is a delusion. Before we achieved our independence, which was the 
beginning of our national life, the colonies derived all their powers from the 
British crown. They were under that crown until the moment that they passed 
under the authority of the Federal Government. They did not cede their au- 
thority to the Federal Goverimient. for they had none to cede. Independence 
was declared and achieved by the people of the whole country, and not by indi- 
vidual States. The United States Constitution was framed and adopted by the 
people, and the right of secession is nowhere recognized. It is neither tolerated 
in the instrument itself, nor in the terms upon which the Constitution was 
adopted and ratified by the people of the several States. The authorities on 
this point are clear and incontrovertible. We are struggling also to maintain 
the principle of human liberty. 

Do you ask where do we get that principle ? I reply, not from the Declara- 
tion of American Independence, but from the human soul, where the Almighty 
planted it. That declaration simply expressed what has ever existed in the breast 
of man ; and if you will consult the writings of Hamilton. Jefferson, Jay. AVash- 
ington, and other of the early American heroes, you will find that the great 
struggle then was, not simply for the freedom of this nation, but /o?- the (treat doc- 
trine of human rights. 'I'hey fought for the liberty of man, endowed by his 
Creator with certain inalienable rights. We also fight to-day for liberty, and in 
proportion as we smite the cause of the Rebellion, as well as the Rebellion itself, 
the Almighty will help us, and crown our arms with victory. [Great applause.] 

And I deem it very appropriate, that the noble General who is with us to-day, 
who first placed the American flag upon the summit of the Rocky Mountains, 
and who gave freedom to California, should be the first to sound the bugle notes 
of emancipation at the head of the army. [Immense cheering.] And although 
the Government did not at that time sustain him, still those bugle notes have, 
ever since, been rolling over the plains, and reverberating through the hills and 
valleys, all over the country. And when those notes are gathered up and set to 
music, and our armies march to that music, then will they move on to honor and 
to victory. Let us then, one and all. respond to the call of our President, and let 
us inscribe in letters of gold upon our banners, the sentiment with which I began, 
'• Liberty and Union, one and inseparable, now and forever." [Prolonged cheers.] 



SPEECH OF HON. E. DELAFIELD SMITH. 

General Frej[ONT, the chairman, then introduced the Hon. E. 
Delafield Smith, the United States District Attorney, wlio was 
received with great enthusiasm, and spoke as follows : — 

Mknt of Xew-York, — This is, in truth, a colossal demonstration. The eye 
can hardly reach the boundaries (if these compact thousands. It would be in 
vain for the voice to attempt it. The people have come in their might. They 



SI 

liave come in tlicir iiKijesty. Tli"y luvve " come as the winds come when forests 
are rendetl." 'rhcy have •' coiiio as tlie waves come when navies are stranded." 
We are here to-day, not to speak and acclaim, but to act and incite to action. 
[Appliuse.J We know that tliis monster rebellion cannot be .spoken down; it 
must be fought down ! [Cheers.] 

\Vi) are assembled to animate each other to renewed efibrts and nobler sacri- 
fices in behalf of our imperiled country. 'J'here is hardly one of us who has not, 
at this hour, some endeared relative on the bloody lields of Virginia, 'i'he voices 
of our armed and sulfering brethren literally cry to us from the ground. To-day 
we hear them. 'J'o-day let us heed them. [Applause.] 'I'he call for fresh troops 
comes to us from a loved and trusted President— from faithful and heroic Cenerals. 
[Loud cheers.] This day determines that it sliall be answered. [Renewed 
cheers.] Let each act as though specially commissioned to obtain recruits for a 
sacred service. [Applause.] 

Fremont is here. You have heard his voice. He has told us to uphold our 
Government and su-ta'n our Generals in the field. Whatever officer may go to 
battle with the President's commission, will be made strong by a loyal people's 
prayers and confidence. [Loud cheering.] 

'I'he army and navy, the President, the Cabinet and the Congress, have done all 
that can now be eli'ecled by them. The issue to-d jy is with the people. Do you 
ask activity on the part of the President '! Recall liis personal labor and super- 
vision, in the council and the field. Do you seek a policy '? Look to his solemn 
conference with the loyalists of tiie bor.Jer States. [Cheers.] Do you demand 
legislation '? 'Witness the matured laws that Congi'ess has spread upon the 
statute-book. A jurist from the bench of our highest tribunal once declared 
a maxim which shocked the country and the world. It is ours, with our 
representatives, to respond : A rei3k,l '■ has no rights which a white MA^' is 
BOUND TO RESPECT I" [Loud uud loiig conliuued cheering, with waviiig of hats 
and handkerchiefs.] 

A traitor cannot own a loyalist of any race. Xor can "service be duo" to 
national conspirators, except at the call of public justice. [Laugliter and 
applause ] 

i'he limits of civilized warfare must and will be observed ; but those limits are 
broad as the boundaries of the ocean, and they lie far beyond the lives and the 
treasure of traitors in arms. [Cheers.] In this mortal combat between the ene- 
mies and the friends of republican liberty, wherein treason scruples at nothing, 
patriots must neglect no means that God and nature have placed in their hands. 
[Loud cheers.] 'J hese institutions were reared on the ruins of British pride. 
Their foundations must be reconstructed on the crumbled pretensions of southern 
oligarchs. [Renewed cheers.] We mu-t, and we will, repel force by force. Tney 
who press an iron heel upon the heart of our noble nation, must perish by the 
sword of her avenging sons. God grant the time may be near when every rebel 
leader may say his prayers, and bite the dust, or hang as high as Hainan. ]f we 
are wise, and true, and brave, the American Union, like the sun in the heavens, 
shall be clouded but for a night. Still shall it move onward, and every obstacle 
in its pathway be withered and crushed. [Ptenewed and continued cheering.] 

Victory, indeed, cannot be won except by arms. Our institutions were the 
gift of the wounded and dead of the armies of Washington. Shakspeare said, 
inid we re-utter in a higher sense, 

'* Things bought with blood must be by blood maintained." 

Look to our armies and rally the people to swell their wasted ranks. Go, you 
who can. And spare neither men nor money to enable others to march to battle. 
[Cheers ] 

Let loyal men permit no question to distract or divide them. Care not what 
a man's theories may be. so that his heart feels and his hand works for the Union. 
Every citizen, North or South, who prays for the success of our arms, and who 
labors for the vindication of our Constitution, whatever may be his politics or 

11 



82 

opinions, is a patriot. [Cheers.] 'I'hey wlio coudemu auy class of our fellow- 
citizens because of differences on collateral issues — those who declare that a 
loyal abolitionist is on a level with an armed secessionist — are wrong in head, or 
at lieart unsound. [Ajiplause. | 

Let assertions like this be at an end. Let all loyal men and all loyal juurnals 
abandon arguments which bear the dull and counterfeit ring of traitor philoso})hy. 
[Loud applause.] 

For the rest — ^tbr those who not alone seem, but are, disloyal — let the people arise 
in their might, and silence them all, whether they speak in the street to the few, or 
seek, through the public press, to poison the many. Law, in many things, cannot 
go so far, nor accomplish so much, as determined public opinion. [Cheers.] 
While men like Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, with herculean strength, strike, 
in their districts, at the hydra of rebellion, shall not we, in New- York, war upon 
the spirit of secession in every form ? [Applause, and cries of " We will."] 
The old Hag must be the paramount object of all. It will be loved by the faith- 
ful. By the false, it must be feared. [Vociferous cheering.] 

They talk of a distinction between fidelity to the Government and devotion to 
the Administration. In the day of national danger or disaster, the two senti- 
ments are inseparable. Distrust him who professes the one only to disclaioi the 
other. [Applause.] When the tempest howls, no prayer breathed for the ship 
forgets the pilot at her helm. [Applause and cheers.] 

Loyalty knows no conditions. Stand by the Government ! Scrutinize its 
action ; but do it like earnest patriots — not like covert traitors. Stand by the 
Administration ! lu times like these, party spirit should be lulled. That spirit 
was hushed in the era of the Revolution — in the days of Madison and Monroe — 
and when the hero of New Orleans crushed the rising form of nullification. 
Our fathers .stood by Jackson as their sires sustained Washington. It is our 
privilege to uphold the arm of a President, great and pure, who will share their 
glory on the page of history. [Loud cheering.] 

1 nuist trespass no longer. [Cries of " Go on, go on."] No, fellow-citizens ; 
I will h\& you farewell. Our illustrious Secretary of State has this day given to 
the army the only son not already in the public service. Let us emulate his 
spirit of sacrifice, and think nothing too dear to offer on the altar of our country. 

Mr. Smith spo]-:e witli a clear, loud voice, and retired in the 
midst of most entliusiastic cheerina-. 



SPEECH OF JOSEPH HOXIE, ESQ. 

Mr. Joseph Hoxie was next introdnced, was warmly received 
and spoke as follows : 

They say this is the young men's stand, intended more especially for the younf 
men, and should any one say, " Why, Hoxie has the impudence to claim the 
honor of ))eIonging to that patriotic part of our fellow-citizens, the young men," 
I should simply say, " Why, my friends, I have belonged to the Young Men's 
Committee for more than forty years." [Laughter and applause.] And now, 
before addressing you, very briefly, I propose that we all unite in singing the 
" Star-Spangled Banner," and I want about five acres of this audience to join 
in the chorus. [Great cheering.] 

The " Star-Spangled Banner "' was then sung bj a glee club on 
the platform, thousands upon thousands of voices in the immense 
crowd joining in the chorus with a most thrilling effect. 



83 

Mr. HoxiE then resumed, as follows : — 

The reverend gentlemen who preceded me took for liis text tliose undying 
words of the lamented Webster, written, 1 am sure, in letters that are never to 
be erased from the heart of every true .Vmerican. In the very brief remarks 1 
liave to make to you my text shall be my country. 1 did not expect, my fellow- 
citizens, ever to be called upon to address an assemblage such as this and upon 
such an occasion as this. Who of us ever imagined, when last we met at this 
plifce, that at this time we should be called on, as we are, by that noble patriot at 
the head of the Government for 300,000 freemen more to crush out this accursed 
rebellion ; but so it is, and we have met here to-day to respond with all our 
hearts to that patriotic call of our Chief Magistrate. [Applause.] And all we 
have upon earth are ready to be sacrificed upon the altar of our country. 
[Cries of" Good," " good.'"] This Union must be preserved, and it shall be pre- 
served. [Great cheering.] And it is not worth while for us now. my fellow- 
citizens, to undertake to criticise the conduct of those who may have command- ■ 
ed our armies in the field, and of those who have directed the legislation in the 
Congress of the United States, or of the chosen councillors of the President of 
the United States — the heads of the various departments. It is in vain for us 
to say that this man has done wrong ; that this man should be removed or that 
man appointed. No, my fellow-citizens, we come here not to ask any such con- 
temptible question as this. We have come here to ask this question : What can 
we do, what shall we do, in this exigency of the country, to preserve the integri- 
ty of the Union and the Constitution of the United States ? [Great applause.] 
That is the question we are called upon to answer. If some of our generals 
have made a mistake, what of it ? Let him, and let him only, throw stones at 
them who never made a mistake himself [Cries of " Good," " good."] No, 
gentlemen, we all confide in the patriotism, the integrity, the honesty of that 
glorious statesman at the head of the Government — [great applause] — confide in 
those whom he has chosen to enable him to carry on the Government. Don't 
say, as I have heard a gentleman say within the last forty-eight hours, that these 
300,000 men will never be raised until Stanton is removed. Voices, " They 
will."] We do not come here to respond to any such sentiments as that. We 
come here to tender all we have to the President of the United States and 
to those associated with him in administering the affairs of this Government. 
Never before in my life — a somewhat advanced one — have I felt the weight of 
the responsibility that should attach to every good citizen as I feel it to-day. 
But I am not alone in this, as these thousands and tens of thousands before me 
bear willing witness. Ihe time for talking, as was well said by my predecessor, 
has passed ; the time for decisive action has arrived. Now, what can we — wli&t 
shall we do — what ought we to do to save our bleeding country? [Voices, 
" Fight."] Our glorious flag was stained with the blood of my father, and oh 
how unworthy I should be of every throb of blood that courses in my veins, if 1 
were not Avilling to sacrifice everything I have upon the earth sooner than to 
see it trail in the dust. [Great cheering.] Hear you not, my friends, wafted 
upon every Southern breeze, the groans of the wounded and the dying from the 
field of battle— of our brothers, our sons and our friends ? Shall they cry to you in 
vain ? [Loud cries of " No, no."] Hear you not the wails of the widow and 
the orphan, demanding of you and me that if we cannot restore to them their 
loved and their lost ones, that we shall swear this day to avenge their fate. We 
have come here to pledge ourselves before God and our country that so long as 
we have an arm to raise or a voice to speak they shall both be used in defence 
of this glorious Union. [Great applause.] What would you think, fellow-citi- 
zens, if, when a fire was devouring your residence, the fireman of an engine com- 
pany, instead of putting on the hose to the engine and playing away upon the 
fire,* should sit down and begin to criticise the conduct of those who constructed 
the' building, or those who perhaps set it on fire, and while they were settling the 
(tuestion of^'bo was to blame the building should be utterly given to the flames 



84 

and destroyed What would you think of a firu company that would do thai ? But 
what would you think, when the flames are wrapping in destruction the nation's 
house, this temple of liberty raised by our fathers and cemented by their bloi.d. 
when its pillars are tottering to their base, of the mean, craven wretches wiio 
should begin to quarrel as to who had set it on fire? ]n God's name let us all 
unite and'put out the flames. It is the temple of our liberty, the nations hou^e 
that is on tire, and we call upon every man to do all he can, however little that 
may be, to avert the danger— and to do it now — to stay this conflagration, and 
save and transmit to your children, and children's children, this glorious inherit- 
ance which we received from our fathefs. 

Here a large delegatiou, with banners flying, preceded by a 
band of music, from the ship-carpenter's department of the United 
States Navy, made its appearance, bringing a fresh accession of 
members to the already dense throng in front of the platform. 
" God Speed the Eight " was then given by the Glee Club, with u 
heartiness and spirit that added greatly to the interest and enthu- 
siasm of the meeting. 

SPEECH OF CHARLES GOULD, ESQ. 

Mr. Gould came forward and said : — 

Fkllow-Citizexs, — "What is to be the effect of this stupendous gatiitring of 
freemen '? Let us have one single practical result, which will do us and do our 
coinniiin country good, and we shall not have met in va'n. Let U!4 resolve to 
have this war ended, and ended in the right woy ; and we shall hear, in less than 
three months, the magnificent shout of victory swelling from the North to the 
South, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. We want volunteers, and we want to 
send them in such a Wiiy, and under such orders, as will terminate tire Wiir. [A 
Yoice — •• Why don't you go yourself?"! 1 have sent two of my children, and I 
hope you will all send yours, or go yourselves. 

It make-i no difi'erence who fights for us, but it makes a great difference who 
fights against us. If we can get away the supporters, the laborers from the 
Southern army, we can conquer them at once. Take away their laborers from 
the fields, and the ditches and embankments. [Great cheering.] Let liberty 
be by our Government proclaimed to the slaves, and every slave in the South 
will know the fact. 'I he masters will be compefled to leave the armies of the 
rebehiiin and hasten home to protect their property and guard their families ; and 
our army, then tru'y the a:rmy of freedom, with hardly the loss of a man, will 
sweep from Mason and Dixon's line to the (Julf, and the victory for freedom be 
won and won, furever. 

Do you ask how this is to be done ? The way is simple and easy. Enforce 
and carry out the proclamation of my friend and your friend here at my side, 
(Major General Fremont.) and the work is done. [Great cheering.] 

SPEECH OF COL. JAS. FAIRMAN. 

Col. Jas. FAiRiiAN was the next speaker. He said : — 

Fellow-Citizexs, — I will confess that it is under no ordinary degree of em- 
barrassment th.at I meet you on thepr^'sent occasion. I have frequently mingled 
my counsel with yours in the blessed peace of the past, when you and I e.xulted 
in being citizens of the Empire City, 0/ the Empire State ; contemplating this 
great city as the apex of a pyramid of civilization and power, whose broad firm 
base was our continent country. 



85 

Who dreamed tlicii— and how brief the interval— that we would be so soon 
assembled, us at this hour, to gaze witli ill-suppressed alarm in each other's faces, 
to gravely counsel in the desperate necessity of calling from the peaceful channels 
of industry, nearly a million of men to combat, upon our own soil, the enemies of 
our laws, libert/v, civilization and national existence. Enemies not niartialed 
under a foreign banner, familiar to history, suggesting old feiais and rival sys- 
tems, with alien languages, institutions and origin ; but men, who but yesterday 
joined with us in the maintenance and defence, and glorying in the proud si<'-- 
nificance of that tiag, under which, as a united people, we have attained a pro- 
gress in wealth and power unprecedented in human history, and which is now 
torn from the staff by Americans, with the red band of rebellion, in the land of 
Washington I Indeed, it is not discreditable to the sagacity of any man to 
admit that the present aspect of our country amazes and appalls him ; for it 
would seem that, equally, the motives which govern the best and worst of men. 
plead against the, not only criminal, but wanton attempt at the destruction of 
a government which fosters the welfare of its humblest inhabitant, and to whose 
career the patriots of every clime were wont to look with trembling hope as the 
auroral light of that day that would usher in the realization of man's hi<'hest 
earthly destiny. 

'J'he defence of liberty and laws, even to the shedding of a deluge of human 
blood, if need be, is the first of rights, though the last of expedients, I thei-efore 
feel no need of apology, while claiming to be opposed to the destruction of 
human life in every instinct of my nature, that I wear a uniform that is signifi- 
cant of sanguinary strife, at a time like the present. For discussion and 
diplomacy are at an end. and we are left to choose whether we will fight at 
Richmond or at New-York and Philadelphia. It has come to this, either the 
Mississip])i and the James or the Delaware and the Xorth rivers must bear the 
crimson tinge which tells to wailing hearts the tale of fraternal strife. ■ 

I will speak to you in the spirit of the instruction given by Napoi'eon to his 
marshals, when he said. " Send what you please to the bulletins, but tell me the 
truth." Thei»efore, while it may not be a welcome announcement, fidelity to my 
country demands it should be made, that you have held the enemy, heretofore, in 
unmerited contempt as to their fighting powers. You forget that they are 
Anglo-Saxons, like yourselves, having every natural element of power that you 
possess, and in addition, some appliances to awaken their energies, which, I 
regret to say, are neglected in our own army. And I would here allude' to some 
of the elements which impart to this contest its fearful aninnis. presenting diffi- 
culties, which, did we not know that this rebellion lifts its led hand in sacri- 
legious defiance against the great whitet hrone of the universe, would well-nigh 
lead us to despond. The leaders of the South, with a sagacity we would do well 
to imitate, address the patriotism and passions of their men. There is not an 
article published in a northern paper, no matter how obscure, which is suscep- 
tible of being tortured into an ungenerous or barbarous significance, but it is 
immediately seized, promulgated and enforced with a fiendish ingenuity of com- 
ment, which fans to a savage fury the too susceptible natures of men reared 
amid an atmosphere which fosters prejudice and arrogance, to the destruction of 
every feeling of nationality. And to more certainly eftl'ct their purpose, the 
exercise takes the form of a catechism, where the speaker recites some alleged 
violence to women or children, or som'ething of the kind, by the Union forces, 
such as the hell-born lie which they fulminated about Butler's proclamation in 
New Orleans ; and then demanding, " Fathers of the South, will you bear this 
without a bloody retribution?" Of course there is a thundering "Never!" 
And the various relations of life are thus appealed to, by exciting interrogatories 
with the peculiar vehemence of southern elocution, till every element of the 
human heart joins in the cry for vengeance in the ))lood of the Union Army. 
'I'he religion of the south, also, is directed to furnish motives to robbery and 
murder • and where it cannot be so directed it is suppressed, and the same iron 
hand that would shut the ear of humanity against the wail of the bondman 



86 

would seek to stiHe the breath of prayer, it it could not be iiiijjre.ssed into asking; 
the benedictions of the God of justice upon the most flagrant inhumanity and 
crime that stains the page of human history. And while this demoniacal indus- 
try is exerted to poison the mind by the press, the same assiduity is seen in 
efforts to prevent the communication of intelligence calculated to shake the con- 
fidence of the blinded rebels as to their ultimate success. Prisoners brought into 
our Jines within the last two weeks, deny that New Orleans, Memphis, or 
Nashville are held by Union troops, and tenaciously assert that a Union gun- 
boat cannot pass the guns of Lovell on the Mississippi! And no matter how 
well a man may know the facts, he dare not, as he values his life, hint thut the 
lies framed for 'the deception of the masses, are other than the truth they claim. 

The palpable, physical elements of this contest, on the part of the enemy, are 
truly stupendous. 'J'he entire population of the South, in a military sense, are 
impressed into the service ; every kind of property in the rebel States which can 
be used for any military purpose, is seized ; and the sole hope of replevin, is 
predicated upon the permanence of the Confederate government. The entire 
currency of these States is dependent for its .redemption upon the success of 
the rebellion ; while they now hold ample territory with abundant natural 
resources for an empire, and awaiting only the ever precarious caprices of 
European diplomacy for foreign recognition with ths practical sympathy 
annexed. 

My past, I trust, preserves me from suspicion of disloyalty while 1 thus speak 
of the power of the rebels ; and I believe it is best to be frank, even if it should 
savor of compliment, as the first [thing toward a successful contest is to squarely 
face the enemy. Then let me add, what is the fruit of ample opportunities of 
knowledge, as my conviction, that until the power of this rebelliou is crushed 
with a gauntlet hand, you cannot call the ground upon which j'ou now stand, 
either free or independent; for, chimerical as it may seem to you, still the scheme 
is entertained witii a lively hope by the rebels, of invading the cities of New- 
York and Philadelphia, to repay with their plunder the losses incurred by the 
desolation of Virginia ; and while you repose in a security, based upon the vast 
population and resources of these cities, you must remember, that military suc- 
cess depends in some cases entirely upon organization. Ridgeley, iu his account 
of Buena Vista, says, there were Mexicans enough to bind every American and 
carry him into Mexico, but they lacked organization ; and to those familiar with 
military'' operations it does not look like phantasy altogether, (in the absence of 
energetic action on the part of the North.) when we hear the apparently wild men- 
ace of the rebels dictating peace before the walls of Philadelphia and New- York. 
Thus I have glanced briefly at the elements, strength, and purposes of the rebel 
conspiracy. I have purposely refrained from the discussion of the agencies which 
contributed to bring this scourge upon us as a people. 1 feel, however, constrain- 
ed to state one fact, elicited from a variety of sources — namely, that the course of 
some of the public men of the North, in the past, has inspired the rebels with 
the conviction that they have allies in the North, whose overt co-operation 
is only prevented by fears of mob violence, and who, at the sight of the three 
barred flag would break the union of that North wiiich now brings pallor to the 
cheek of treason. And at different times, while urging intelligent rebels by the 
terrors of the national arm, and pleading with fraternal earnestness in view of 
the traditions of the glorious old Flag; to induce them to abandon the heresy 
and crime of secession, 1 have been met with the speeches, resolutions, and 
platforms of Northern political leaders, giving promises to justify every claim of 
the rebels even to bloody isolation, as a remedy for the alleged wrongs of the 
South ; and this blighting stultification paralyzes even now, in a great measure, 
all attempts to convince the rebels that the North and nation are verily in earnest. 

'I'hese are some of the facts in view of which we must act. If any man 
doubted that we aro fighting practically an aroused nation, the march from 
Fortress .Monroe to Kichmond, presenting seventy miles of desolated homesteads 
and abandoned plantations, is calculated to correct and convince him, And under 



87 

the views and infonuation to which the mass of tlie rebels are Hiniled, they, 
doubtless, earnestly believe, that the war in which they are engaged' is as 
ri.<>:hteous, justifiable, and hopeful as that of the Revolution of 'TO. 

Jn view of these facts, then, it is not simply an expedient, subject to our 
discretion, ichicli wai/ to use to put down the rebellion ; for it is patent to the 
huniblest understanding, that an earnest purpose to put down rel)ellion will be 
indicated by using ercry instrumentality calculated to compass that end. If 
this be so, then, how are we to understand a discussion of three weeks' duration, 
as to whether it would not be better to prohibit bi/ law, the use of loyal men oi' a 
particular shade in quelling this rebellion. The arguments adverse to the 
employment of blacks being silenced by the Battle of New Orleans, and more 
emphatically so. by the operations in Hayti in the attempt to re-enslave that 
people— when the negroes, under the leadership of a nu\n born a slave, hurled 
the disciplined troops of two of the most warlike nations of Europe, quivering 
from their shores ; when only by a meanly contrived strategem of the great 
Napoleon, and by it getting the person of L'Overture in his power, could France 
temporarily subdue the little island of Hayti. I am not advocating either the 
social or political rights of any race, adversely. I prefer to speak on one 
subject at a time, and I speak of the muscles of a black man as I would of the 
muscles of a horse, for a definite purpose ; and, in ray opinion, nothing can 
transcend the beetle-heeded stupidity of those men, who cannot discuss the 
digging of trenches and shooting of rifles without merging, by an affinity of 
ideas known only to themselves, into the most occult questions of ethnology, as 
to essential equalities of races, etc. How absurd it would seem if we stood in 
'• Fives Court," London, about a century ago, while Cribb and Moleneaux were 
contending for the championship of England, and would there suggest the 
essential difference of the white and black races as a settlement of the question 
contested by the two giants. It will be remembered that on that occasion the 
black was beaten hjfoul phiij — a thing of which the negro seems to have always 
had his share. I would suggest to these philosophers that we do not stick to 
purity of races in the army now. A mule compared to a horse would be consid- 
ered a rather illegitimate style of an animal, yet nothing but mules could pull 
long enough and fast enough to suit our recent march to the James River, not- 
withstanding the inferiority of the race. But, seriously, I would here make a 
remark which I will not allow my shoulder-straps to suppress ; shoulder-straps 
or no shoulder-straps, I say that 1 have seen men suffering the privations insepa- 
rable from the line of duty during the recent campaign on the Isthmus, doing a 
hard day's duty in the field, followed by a hard tour of duty in digging trenches, 
and humannature has sunk beneath the load, and I have seen them rolled in 
their blanket and laid down in their final rest — superinduced, doubtless, by a tax 
upon their energies which might have been divided with the slave, who must, 
inevitably, share the benefit of the triumph. I leave the transcendental philoso- 
phers to defend that policy which sacrifices a white man to save a black one, 
while at the same time, contending for the superiority of the former. Let every 
man who claims to be a patriot banish his theories of the past, and suspend his 
schemes for the future, wherever they would interfere with present usefulness. 
We are now at war with the rebels, we arc noio at war with the rebels ,• therefore, 
all words and acts indicating any other treatment of the rebellion than by the 
sword, is treason or imbecility. When war begins, diplomacy is exhausted. 
That man is simply a knave who speaks of conciliation while the red tide of 
blood dyes the banks of the James and the Chickahominy. The two policies of 
combating and conciliation cannot be at the same time pursued by the Govern- 
ment. And it is a still bolder treason and fraud to suppose that they can be both 
applied by a general in the field. It would seem in the ^jast, as if some of our 
generals thought Civil War, meant a war conducted without giving offence to 
the enemy. And some have secured the applause of the enemy by olive branch 
campaigns and conciliator ij conflicis ! Let the line be drawn at once, and let 
those who still chirp conciliation seek the purlieus of putrid politics, and let not 



the '• tainted rebel stain the soldier." 1 here utter an apothegm, and roconimend 
to rigid application ; whenever a general has become popular with the enemj-. 
it is time that we were done with him. 'I'he American Nation mean to conquer 
treason, and will view as enemies those wlio stand between them and the foes of 
our Hag. We cannot conquer without being deeply in earnest ; for our enemy 
is determined, numerous, and brave, and your superior numbers aiid resources 
will not save you unless you bring them to bear. 

\o man will think liglitly of this contest, who stood, as I did, at Fair Oaks, 
and saw the enemy for six hours pour tiieir masses into the very jaws of death ; 
for I saw them march boldly into the open field, as near as the outskirts of this 
assemblage, where every discharge of our cannon marked a deep gulf in the 
advancing mass, who still advanced, literally over heaps of the dead, till that 
bloody arena was so covered with prostrate confederates, till at nightfall, it was 
like a' ghastly bivouac, terribly significant of the desperate energy of the rebellion. 

Yet we will triumph ! I feel assured in saying this, from the evidence of my 
senses, of the indomitable valor of the individual soldier in the Union ranks. 
And 1 will confess to some surprise at the bravery and efficiency of mere boys 
on the battle-field. I saw young Americans in the Union ranks, so light and 
frail, as to preclude their acceptance as soldiers, having been mustered as drura- 
ers, shoulder rifles and rush into the fight, loading and firing with a rapidity and 
tact, that brought many a brown unilbrm to the dust. And when, atter a con- 
flict of over six hours' duration, in various duties and parts of the field, I found 
myself surrounded by nine members of my command, whose devotion found 
expression in voluntarily remaining by my side, two of the nine were drummer- 
boys, thfir faces begrimed with powder, but lit up with an inspiration that 
showed they felt the majesty of their mission. How can such an army be finally 
conquered ?" Is there not a sublimity in that comparatively little band of Spartans 
making a Thermopyhe of Harrison's JJar. and holding their clinched hands in 
defiance at the rebel hosts around them. Shall these men cry in vain for a suffi- 
cient numlier to join their decimated ranks, to give them a proximate equality 
of numbers for the last grand contest, where all the hopes of our hearts arc at 
stake? Is not this blood too precious to shed in contests where nothing is de- 
termined, except to show the world that our country is a nation of soldiers ? 

Then promptly furnish the three hundred thousand bayonets that will end this 
contest with the lasting triumph of Liberty and Union. And my word for it, 
that if this be promptly done the cadence of three hundred thousand marching 
on tlie rebel capital will shake with their earthquake tread the centre of the 
rebellion, and there will be no more battles in the sense of Pittsburg Landing, 
Fort Donelson, Fair Oaks, and the contests of the last two weeks. Then what 
we want is, that you, your lathers, brothers, friends, join in every movement cal- 
culated to haste the consummation Ity a rapid reinforcement of the army on the 
James River. Let no man or boy who can bear a rifle mistake or neglect his 
dutv in this hour of our country's peril. Li this great contest there is not a 
man in this broad land so humble as to be removed from the consequences of 
the issue. 

I have sometimes, while pacing outside of my tent under the beautiful star- 
light of a Virginia sky, the quiet and darkness inspiring a reflective mood, tried 
to grasp the momentous interests involved in this struggle. I have looked in 
imagination into the dark gulf of disintegration and ruin upon the verge of 
which our country seemed to stand upon a trembling base, and contemplated the 
possibility of the splendid temple of our Liberties and Nationality broken into as 
many conflicting fragments as there are States and Territories, with rival 
interests, institutions, policies and prejudices, proscriptive passports, postage 
and commercial laws, contiguous territory and consequent necessities for ponder- 
ous military establishments, with the perpetual danger and tendency of a combi- 
nation of a portion against the remainder, and the temptation to foreign invasion, 
till, with rapid pace and throbbing brow, I have wondered if these reflections 
are a secret, or how men can be so dead in the midst of a storm so portentous. 



89 

Then let us be adinotiishetl, and know that national existence, liberty, order, law, 
the organization of human society ui)on a civilized basis, and flie vast charge 
given us by our fathers for posterity, signified in the star-spangled emblem of the 
brotherhood of freemen — all tremble in precarious existence, so long as there is 
upon the continent a pole on end with the three-barred ensign of treason and 
murder upon it. And let us not only bring to a bloody grave this monster of 
our day, but let us bring our children, like young Hannibals. to the altar of our 
country, and from their infant lips extort the obligation that will doom the man 
whose temerity leads him to the remotest sympathy with the foul instigators of 
this hideous drama. 

The whites of the South plead, by the circumstances to which I have hurriedly 
alluded, for deliverance ; for a large portion of the passion and patriotism now 
swelling the rebellion would, by tlie power of a free press and an honest pulpit, 
be converted to the cause of the Union. But you must remember tliat the iron 
arm which now grasps the throat of press and pulpit in the rebel States, must be 
broken with the sword before you can inaugurate these remedial measures. A 
free press and an honest pulpit cannot precede your arms, but can only come on 
the heel of rifled cannon and Federal bayonets. 

Then let us show how we prize our liberties by alacrity in their defence ; let 
us not be stingy of blood where it will bring such large revenue of blessings to 
our country and the human race. And doing our duty in this dark hour, we 
will sustain that flag whose folds are radiant with glorious memories of the past, 
with all its proud significance intensified by the struggle, and see our country 
rise from this bloody baptism into a new life and majesty as truly the land of the 
FREE and the home of the brave. We will triumph the moment we deserve to. 
Then let us vindicate on the field our sincerity when we say, — 

"Forever float that standard sheet, 

Where breathes the foe but fiills before us? 
Wlith freedom's soil beneath our feet, 
And freedom's banner floating o'er us." 

SPEECH OF COLONEL SIMON H. MIX. 

Colonel SiMOJsr H. Mix, of the Second New- York cavaliy, 
Burusides exj^edition, came forward, and was greeted with 
cheers. He spoke as follows ; — 

My fellow-citizens, it is the duty of a soldier at all times to fight. [A voice, 
" AVe know that."] It is sometimes the duty of a soldier to speak. 1 consider 
this as one of those occasions ; for inasmuch as I am incapacitated from doing 
the former, through the politeness of an invitation extended to me by your com- 
mittee, I shall try my hand at the latter. It seems to me, my fellow-citizens, but 
a day since I left the city of New- York to go to the battle-field. Almost the 
last day I spent in this city was on the occasion of a great monster meeting in 
this Square, held aliout eighteen months ago. I then resolved to go to the in- 
terior of the State, from whence I came, and appeal to the Union men there and 
raise a cavalry regiment, and I did not appeal in vain. .My friends, I wish to say 
here distinctly that I am not here for the purpose of criticising any of the acts 
of my superiors. With the man who is placed over me will I serve and fight at 
all times. [Vociferous cheering.] I have served under Gen. McClellan. [Here 
three cheers were given for Gen. McClellan.] I have served under Gen. Banks 
— [cheers] — I have served under the great and glorious Burnside. [Great 
cheering] In tliis connection I wish to say a word. Experience is the best 
teacher, and when any man comes to you and tells you if the negroes of the 
South are employed in the army the soldiers that we have there will not fight, 
do you tell that man he is a fool, and that he does not know what he is talking 

12 



^0 

about. [Great cheering.] In the South they have what we term farmers by 
day and soldiers by night ; rebel bandits, who prowl around and shoot down our 
soldiers upon the outposts. Only yesterday, when I came from Newberu, I 
brought several soldiers of my regiment who had suffered in that way. I would 
take the negroes of the South and put muskets in their hands, for nowhere in 
the swamps of North Carolina can you find a path where a dog can go that the 
negro does not understand. 'I'here are gentlemen here who will bear me witness 
when 1 state this fact, that in all our expeditions in North Carolina we have de- 
pended upon the negroes for our guides ; for without them we could not have 
moved with any safety The information we have received from them has always 
been reliable and always correct. I have never known an instance to the con- 
trary. [Applause.] My friends, you all no dou):)t wonder how it is that the 
South has arrayed in front of the Federal army at Richmond two hundred thou- 
sand men. But it can be easily explained. Every man in the South 
who can carry a shot-gun, had, of necessity to become a soldier. There 
are two classes in the South — the representative men, who number fifteen 
or twenty in a county, and the poor whites, if you throw out of the 
account the blacks ; but so far as my observation extends, the blacks are 
a much superior class in intellect to the poor degraded whites of the South. 
What is done with these poor whites ? They are dragged ruthlessly from their 
homes, and compelled to go into the army. When I first reached Newberu. the 
duty was assigned to me to advance into the country thirty miles on each side, 
over ground that our troops had not before then occupied. Wherever I went I 
found houses deserted, and the mothers, wives and children weeping for those 
W'ho had been taken from their homes and carried to the army. 

1 hold in my hand a scrap of paper, from Tlie Raleigh Standard, which 
contains the following : — 

Head-quarters N. C. Militia, Adjutant-General's Office, } 
Raleigh, Dec. 2lst, 1861. [ 

Special Order No. 77. — Lieut. Sanford Earnest, of the 71st Regiment N. C. Militia, 
having declared his preference for the Government of the United States, and having de- 
clined to march under the flag of the Confederate States, is hereby dismissed, being un- 
worthy of a commission in the Militia of the State — and will hereafter do duty as a 
private. 

The Colonel will have this order read before the Regiment, and printed in the news- 
papers of his county. 

By order of the Commander-in-Chief, 

J. G. MARTIN, Adjutant-General. 

That is the way they are treated. [Cries of " Shame, shame !"] 

The Colonel proceeded to give some further incidents connected 
with his experiences while in North Carolina, which were listened 
to with great interest, but brought his speech abrtiptlj to a close — • 
the rain, which came up so suddenly, having already began to 
fall, and causing the hasty dispersion of a large portion of the im- 
mense throng. 



91 

At this juncture a rain-storm set in and rendered an adjourn- 
ment absolutely necessary ; but previous to separating, Frank 
W. Ballard moved, and Cephas Brainerd seconded, the fol- 
lowing resolutions, which were adopted : — 

Resolved, That the young men of New- York, alive to tlie exigencies of the 
crisis now upon the country, and, as ever, devoted to the preservation of the pure 
democratic principle, are bound by every interest to press forward into the 
ranks, and, in the most earnest, sj)eedy, and effectual manner, put an end forever 
to the accursed idea of Secession and Disunion. To us life is valueless without 
Liberty, Liberty useless without Union, and Union merely nominal if the idea of 
Secession is not finally and forever put to sleep, beyond an awakening this side 
of Hell. 

Resolved, I'liat, while we have no sympathy with any class of demagogues who 
place conditions upon their professions of loyalty to the Union, we are sensible 
that our army is waging this war with fettered hands, and we beseech this 
Government to overstep the constructive bounds which prevent the employment 
of every, evury, EVERY" means of suppressing this infernal rebellion. 



The Committee of Arrangements and the public were indebted 
to Major Willard of the Anthon Battery of Light Artillery, 
and to Messrs. Brewster & Co. and the workmen of their manu- 
factory, for the salutes which were fired at stated periods dming 
the proceedings 

Their thanks are also due to the gentlemen who kindly volun- 
teered their services as a Chorus, and who added so much to the 
interest of the proceedings. 

They were Messrs. Henry Camp, Sigismund Lasar, F. G. Taylor, 
Charles Loomis, Henry Molten, Geo. N. Seymour, Joseph B. 
Mather, John J. Ennis, E. G. Bartlett, Geo. E. Aiken, Jonathan 
Aiken, Charles Aiken, Henry J. Wright, and Messrs. Anderson 
and Devo. 



INVITATION TO DISTINGUISHED CITIZENS TO ADDRESS THE 
MEETING OF LOYAL CITIZENS. 

New York, July llih, 1862. 

Sir, — At a Convention of Committees, severally appointed by the Common 
Council of this city, by the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New- York, by 
the Union Defence Committee, and by bodies of Loyal Citizens of this city, it 
was resolved to hold, on Tuesday, the 15th instant, a Mass Meeting of all parties 
who are in favor of supporting the Government in the prosecution of the war 
and suppressing the rebellion, and to express, without reference to any party 
question whatever, their undiminished confidence in the justice of the cause, and 
their inflexible determination to sustain it ; and to that end to proffer to the 
Government their aid to the extent of all tlieir resources. 

In accordance with this purpose, the undersigned were appointed by the Con- 
vention a Committee to invite distinguished citizens, of all parties, to address the 
meeting upon its object, and in the spirit in which it is convened. 

In performance of this duty, it affords us much pleasure to request that you 
will address the meeting on that occasion. Be pleased to give us your accept- 
ance of this invitation, by note, addressed to the Secretary of this Committee, at 
the Chamber of Commerce, as soon as convenient. 

James W. White, "] 

Geo. Opdyke, i 

Samuel Sloan, \ v t t n •« 

Prosper M. Wetmore, | ^'^''^ Committee. 

Denning Duer, | 

Charles Gould, J 

Chas. Goui,d, Secretary. 



GENTLEMEN INVITED TO ADDRESS THE MEETING. 



Hon. Hannibal Hamlin, 

Hon. William H. Seward, 

Hon. Salmon P. Chase, 

Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, 

Hon. Gideon Welles, 

Hon. Montgomery Blair, 

Hon. Edward Bates, 

Hon. Caleb B. Smith, 

Gov. Edwin D. Morgan, 

Gov. John A. Andrew, 

Gov. Israel Washburn, Jr., 

Gov. N. S. Berry, 

Gov. Frederick Holbrook, 

Gov. William A. Buckingham, 

Gov. Charles S. Olden, 

Gov. a. G. Curtin, 

Gov. a. W. Bradford, 

Gov. F. H. Peirpont, 

Gov. Austin Blair, 

Gov. Andrew Johnson, 

Gov. H. R. Gamble, 

Gov. O. P. Morton, 

Gov. David Todd, 

Gov. Alexander Ramsey, 

Gov. Richard Yates, 

Gov. Edward Salomon, 

Gov. William Sprague. 

Hon. Lot M. Morrill, 

Hon. William P. Fessenden, 

Hon. John P. Hale, 

Hon. Preston King, 

Hon. Ira Harris, 

Hon. John Sherman, 

Hon. Bknj. F. Wade, 

Hon. David AVilmot, 

Hon. H. B. Anthony, 

Hon. Solomon Foot, 

Hon. Jacob Collamer, 

Hon. Charles Sumner, 

Hon. Henry Wilson, 

Hon. Zachariah Chandler, 

Hon. J. W. Grimes, 

Hon. LyxMan Trumbull, 

Hon. Henry M. Rice, 

Hon. M. S. Wilkinson, 

Hon. J. B. Henderson, 

Hon. Joseph A. Wright, 

Hon. Moses F. Odell, 

Hon. William Wall, 

Hon. Alfred Ely, 

Hon. Daniel S. Dickinson, 

Hon. Edward Haight, 

Hon. Frederick A. Conkling, 

Hon. Schuyler Colfax, 

Hon. Owen Lovejoy. 



Hon. John F. Potter, 
"1 Hon. Elijah Ward, 

I Hon. RoscoE Conkling, 

I "^ Hon. Galusha A. Grow, 
j-;^ Hon. Francis P. Blair, Jr., 
I ;2 Hon. Henry L. Dawes, 
1 Hon. Elisha B. Wash burn e, 

J Hon. Lyman Tkemaine, 

Hon. Richard B. Connolly, 

Hon. George Bancroft, 

Hon. Horace Binney, 

Hon. Edward Everett, 

Hon. John A. King, 

Hon. Joseph Holt, 

Hon. Carl Shulz, 

Gen. Hiram Walbridge, 

John W. Forney, Es([., 

William Curtis Noyes, Esq., 

Maj. Gen'l John C. Fremont, U. S. A. 

David Dudley Field, Esq., 

Com. Andrew H. Foote, 

Richard Bustekd, Esq., 

William M. Evarts, Esq., 

James T. Brady, Esq., 

Francis B. Cutting, Esq., 

Charles King, Esq., 

Rev. Dr. H. W. Bellows, 

Rev. Dr. R. W. Hitchcock, 

Rev. Dr. Vinton, 

Rev. W. G. Brownlow, 

Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, 

Rev. J. P. Thompson, 

Major Gen'l John E. Wool, 

Brig. Gen'l Franz Sigel, 

Brig. Gen'l Shields, 

Brig. Gen. S. Van Vliet, 

General Lewis Wallace, 

Col. Francis B. Spinola, 

Judge Chas. p. Daly, 

Prof. A. D. Bache, 

Lieut. Gen'l Winfield Scott, 

Major Gen'l John A. Dix, 

Major Gen'l James S. Wadsworth, 

Major Charles W. Le Gexdre, 

Brig. Gen'l John Cochrane, 

Brig. Gen'l 0. M. Mitchell, 

Judge Edwards Pierrepont, 

Frederick Kapp, Esq., 

Orestes A. Brownson, Esq., 

L. E. Chittenden, Esq., 

D. S. Coddington, Esq., 

James A. Briggs, Esq., 

George Gibbs, Esq. 

Hon. W. H. Wallace. 



REPLIES OF DISTINGUISHED CITIZENS. 



LETTER FROM WILLIAM H. SEWARD, SECRETARY OF STATE. 

Department of State. ] 
Washington, \Atk July. 1862. f 

To James W. White, George Opdyke, and others, Esquires, 
Select Commitlce, ifc: 

Gentlemen, — Your note, inviting me to attend a meeting of loyal citizens of 
New- York, to be lield to-morrow evening, has been received. 

The objects of the meeting are of vital importance. They involve notliing less 
than a choice between an early peace, with the deliverance of the nation from all 
surrounding dangers, or a protracted war, with hazards of ultimate national dis- 
solution. 

Public duties forbid my leaving the Capital at this moment ; but I have given 
to the only male member of my family, not already in the public service, per- 
mission to enroll himself as a private in the ranks of the volunteers, which it is 
your purpose to send into the field. 

I have the honor to be, gentlemen, 

Yom- very obedient servant, 

WILLIAM H. SEWARD. 



LETTER OF E. D. MORGAN, GOVERNOR OF STATE OF NEW-YORK. 

State of New-Y'ork, Executive Department, ) 
Albany, July Uth, 1862. f 
Gentlemen : 

I have received your invitation to be present and address the mass meeting of 
the citizens of New- York, on Union Scjuare, to-morrow afternoon, for the pur- 
pose of expressing their undiminished confidence in the justice of our cause, and 
to proffer to the Government their aid, to the eitent of their resources. 

I feel that this gathering will be worthy the occasion which calls it forth, w^orthy 
the great city whose potential voice has more than once given encourai^ement to 
the Government and country in the dark hours of this struggle — a meeting that 
will be remembered in after-time, as an index of the mighty spirit that moved 
tiie people of 1862, to declare anew that the Union " must and shall be pre- 
served." 

The preliminary work of enlistment, just now, seems to demand my presence 
here, and I shall, therefore, be unable to meet with you to-morrow. But my 
interest will be in no degree abated because of my absence, for I feel that the 
action of New- York at this time is a matter of the deepest importance. Let the 
great metropolis of the country again emphatically declare its purpose to uphold 
the cause of the Union to the last, by giving of its men and means, if necessary, 
"' to the extent of its resources." and it will arouse the whole country. Already 
meetings are appointed for the same evening as your own. This capital and 
other cities will have their masses in council at the same hour that you are col- 
lected together. Here, as in iVew-York and elsewhere, matters of mere political 
policy are, as they should be, forgotten, and partisan clamor hushed, in view of 
the country "s peril. Let us, for the present at least, only remember that we are 



95 

fellow-members of a commoiiwciilth. L(>t us show that in the hour of danj^er we 
can rise superior to tlK> j)i-('ju(]ices of the [jast, and tonether prepare to defend, 
successfully, the '• palladium of our political safoty and hiippiness." 

A period has come when none can hesitate, none can be idle. In the prov- 
idence of God, it would seciui that before the evil cloud shall pass, all must be 
brought to sacrifice somethiuf,' for the country's cause ; either to render personal 
service in the field, furnish nr.iterial aid, or assume; the care of families of volun- 
teers. 80 much is duty. Let it be done, and done quickly. In perilous times, 
delay is treason. The necessities of our situation are inevitable. 'i'h(> ((uestions 
presented are terribly practical. Men are the want of the hour. Our State will 
respond to tire call of the President ; but to assure this, the families of volunteers 
must be provided for. Wliile fiuhting for fireside rights, their own firesides, in 
their absence, must not be })erraitted to be darkened by want. If the response 
to the requisition is promptly made, we may expect increased vigor in putting 
down tlie rebellion and vindicating the national power, and that blows ({uick and 
heavy shall be made to fall upon the staggering forces of the insurgents. All the 
powers possessed by the leaders of the rebellion are being used by them with 
passionate zeal. Let us, then, ask that they be met with at least equal earnestness 
by the National C4overnment. Longer lenity to rebels is rank injustice to loyal 
men. 

I have the honor to be, with great respect, 

Your obedient servant, 

E. D. MORGAN. 

To James W. White, Esq. Hon. Geo. Opdyke, Hon. Samuel Sloan, Prosper 
M. Wetmore, Esq., Denning Duer, Esq., Charles Gould, Esq., Committee. 



LETTER OF F. H. PEIRPOINT, GOV. OP VIRGINIA. 

Executive Chamber, Wheeling, Va., i 
Juhj Uth, 1862. ' f 

James W. White, George Opchjke, Samuel Sloan, and others, N. Y. : 

Gentlemen, — Your favor requesting me to address a meeting of the citizens of 
New-York, composed of all persons, without distinction of party, who are in 
favor of prosecuting the war and suppressing the rebellion, is received. The delay 
of the mail in bringing your request in time, if no other cause, prevents my being 
with you. I would like to be there. The heart of every true patriot will re- 
spond to the object of the meeting with a joyful Amen. 

New-York now occupies a position second to no other city in the world. She 
controls the finances and commerce of the continent. Your city is one of the 
triumphs of American freedom. Put down the rebellion, establish free schools, 
a free press and free speech in the Southern States, and New-York's present is 
only the beginning of her future greatness. It is right tliat such movement 
should commence there. 

You say the object of the meeting is " to express, without reference to any 
party question whatever, your undiminished confidence in thejustice of the ciuise, 
and your inflexible determination to sustain it ; and, to that end, to proffer to 
the Government your aid, to the extent of all your resources." 

Gentlemen these words have the ring of the pure metal. They will gladden 
the throbbing heart of the nation. What patriot will stop at this hour of his 
country's peril to cavil about party ? Be sure that we have a ronntrij to govern, 
before we begin the contest who shall govern it. The cup of our political sins 
will not be drained, until we can look beyond party to our country, and our coun- 
try only. 

Six mouths before the breaking out of the rebellion, all that portion' of our 
country outside of the rebel States was the most prosperous and hapfiy people on 
the face of the earth. But the rebels, like Haman, borne down by the weight of 



06 

their own inipotency, envious of thoir more prosperous neighbors, conceived the 
scheme of taking- from us. by iuauiyuratiiig this rebellion, the glorious inheritance 
of our fathers, purchased by their blood freely spilled upon an hundred battle- 
fields. We owe it to ourselves, to posterity, to the sacred memory of our fathers, 
to mete to them Haraan's fate. To do this, we should be as economical as 
possible of the lives of the loyal soldiers, and provide bountifully for those going 
to the field and for those they leave behind. 

Say to them when they go, '' Use all the means God and nature and circum- 
stances have put in your power to suppress the rebellion and punish traitors." 
Kebeis' property, in the rebel sense of the word, of whatever kind, sensible or in- 
sensible, should be made to contribute to the suppression of the rebellion in any 
manner that it can be made available. 

This war has been inaugurated and prosecuted by the rebels without reference 
to the rights of Union men. It is not for them to claim constitutional guaranties. 
They have no rights under the Constitution, save the infliction of the penalty of 
their crimes. They have grown insolent by their dominion over their own slaves, 
until they have adojrted as their political axiom, " that Slavery is the normal 
condition of the working classes." Upon that principle they are attempting to 
build their empire. This is in derogation of English liberty and American 
liberty, and of all that has raised the Anglo-Saxon race to its present greatness 
in this country and in Europe. It is an attempt to degrade every free laboring 
man in the nation ; not only the native born, but the German and Irishman, who 
seek an asylum in this land of the free, are denounced as only fit for slaves. 

Mr. Jefferson has given us advice intended, doubtless, for occasions like the 
present. He says : — ' A strict observance of the written law is, doubtless, one of 
the highest duties of a good citizei. ; but not the highest. The law of necessity 
of self-preservation, of saving our country when in danger, are of higher obliga- 
tion. To lose our country by a scrupulous adherence to written law, would be to 
lose the law itself, with life, liberty, property, and all those who are enjoying them 
with us ; thus absurdly sacrificing the end to the means." Here is a chart made 
for the occasion by one who comprehended our institutions and the enormities of 
rebellion. 

Gentlemen, this is the last contest our free institutions will have, if we put 
forth the strength of the nation, and punish rebellion as it deserves. But re- 
member, there is but one time left to put down the usurpers — that is the present. 
We cannot fold our arms this year, and fight the next. We must fight now, or 
all is lost. The contest is gigantic — the result, the freedom or enslavement of the 
nation. It is the removal of the last fetter thrown around the thirteen old colo- 
nies. Redeemed and disenthralled, America will rise with new strength, and in 
sublime proportions, the beauty of the whole earth. 

This is the most gigantic rebellion the world ever saw. There is the most 
gigantic stake being played for. The (piestion is : Shall Slavery or Freedom be 
universal ? There is no concealing it. Tiiis is the issue. The rebels have pre- 
sented and /'y/av/ it upon the nation. We have accepted, and it is to be tried 
at the point of the l)ayonet and the muzzle of the cannon ; and were it not for 
the traitors in our midst, the verdict for freedom would be rendered in three 
months. Every device that the devil can invent and put into the heads of trai- 
tors, seems to be brought forward to keep men out of the field, and to paralyze 
the arms of those already there. 'I'hese traitors are tolerated in high and low 
places. It is the grasp of their hand now upon the body politic that partially 
paralyzes our streuirth. They are endeavoring to enlarge their grasp. This is 
our danger. But there were traitors in the Ciimp of Moses, in the social family 
of Jesus Christ ; in the army of the Revolution, and it would be wonderful if we 
had them not now in this our country's struggle. They have ever received their 
reward, and they will, doubtless, in the present instance. 

Gentlemen, everything depends on prompt, resolute and determined action, 
under the blessing of God. 

I am. yours. <fcc.. F. H. PEIRPOINT. 



97 



LETTER OF ISRAEL WASHBURX, JR., GOVERXOR OF MAIXE. 

:ne, Exrcutive Departmr: 
Augusta. Juhj 12///, 1862. 



State of Maine, Executive Depart.vrnt, \ 



Charles Gould, Es<]. : 

Dear Sir, — I have received your invitation to take part in a nio('tin<^ of the 
faithful citizens of New-York, to be held on the l.ith instant. While on that 
day I can serve the cause, in the interest of wiiich the meetinr;- is called, only by 
attending to the dutits which crowd upon me here, my heart and liopes will be 
with the good and earnest men who will come together at that timc^ in the vast 
metropolis, to speak to the American people of the demands and necessities of the 
hour. The country is in danger, but it can and must l)e saved. Let the people 
but perceive the greatness and imminence of the peril, and they will rise to the 
height of every sacrifice that is required of them Never before were they so 
appealed to by all that is strongest and noblest in manly hearts. The necessity 
is upon them to fight for their homes, for honor, and lor life. Let the coward 
blanch if he must : let the faint-hearted fail in the hour of his country's agony, 
and let the miscreant traitor consent that this fair heritage — all the gains of all 
the ages — the hoi)e of future generations, of the millions yet to be — liberty, civil- 
ization. '• the thousand years of peace " — all, all. shall be cast away and lost, 
utterly and forever — the true and patriotic men will unite in one earnest, resolute, 
devoted, and successful effort to crush out a revolt so causeless and wicked as to 
■whiten by the contrast all previous crimes in the history of nations. 

The struggle must be short, sharp and decisive ; for in a war like this, tempo- 
rizing is waste, and tinudity is cruelty. Every lawful expedient and means which 
the Government can lay hold of, to put down this rebellion, must be used ; and 
every man in the country, without respect to race or complexion, who can aid in 
this work, must be employed for the sake of every other man. 

Tour meeting is called, primarily, to arouse the country to the duties of the 
crisis; and so certain is it to accomfdish this end, that it may assure the Admin- 
istration at Washington, that if this Government is to be broken up. it will not 
be by reason of any neglect or fault of the people. 

I have the honor to be, very truly. 

Your obedient servant, 

ISRAEL WASHBURN, Jr. 



LETTER OF CHARLES S. OLDEN, GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY. 

State of New Jersev, Executive Department, ) 
Trenton, July 14//;, 1862. f 
Gentlemen : 

I have duly received your invitation to attend a meeting of the citizens o' 
New- York, to be held on the 15th inst. My official duties are so pressing and 
incessant that I am compelled to decline it. 

At such a time as this it is the plain duty of every citizen to devote his time, 
his money, and his influence to the support of the Government ; if it is not now 
sustained, our property, our lives, and our liberties are at the mercy of treason- 
able and dissolute factions. 

'l"he influence of your city upon the public sentiment of the country is justly 
o-reat. The patriotic action of the proposed meeting of your citizens, while it 
will be highly appreciated by the Government, will produce the most favorable 
effect among the people, by cheering the patriotic, encouraging the timid, and 
awing the disloyal. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 

CHARLES S. OLDEN. 

Messrs. James W. White, Geo. Opdyke, and others, Select Committee. 

13 



98 

LETTER OF A. W. BRADFORD, GOVERNOR OF MARYLAND. 

State of Maryland, Executive Department, } 
Annapolis, July I4th, 1862. { 

Hon. James IF. Wkite, George Opihjke, and others, Committee, &fc. 

Gentlemen, — I am honored \vitli jonr invitation, just received, to attend and 
address a mass meeting, to-morrow evening, in your city, of '" all parties who are 
in favor of supporting the Government in the prosecution of the war," <fec. 

My own engagements at present, connected chiefly with objects similar to 
those contemplated liy your Convention, and particularly in promoting by all 
possible means a prompt response to the late call for volunteers, will, much to 
my regret, compel me to forego tiie pleasure of attending yuur meeting. 

With my most cordial wishes fcr your complete success, and the speedy ac- 
complishment of the object we have in common at heart, . 

I am, with great respect, 

Your obedient servant, 

A. W. BRADFORD. 



LETTER OF RICHARD YATES, GOVERNOR OF ILLINOIS. 

State of Illinois, Executive Department, 
Springfield, Julij 22d, 1862. 



Charles Goidd, Esq., Secy, fyc , Neiv-York C/ty : 

Sir, — Your invitation to attend the Union mass meeting in your city, on the 
loth inst.. did not reach me until that day. 

It would have aff irded me much pleasure to have met the patriotic citizens of 
the Empire State on that occasion, and interchange with them views upon the 
conduct of the war, and the best means to be employed m bringing it to a speedy 
and successful issue. 

I am, very respectfully, <fec., 

RICHARD YATES, 

Gov. of Illinois. 



LETTER OF WILLIAM A. BUCKINGHAM, GOVERNOR OF 
CONNECTICUT. 

State of Connecticut, Executive Department, ) 
Norwich, July lith, 1862. j 

Charles Goidd, Esq., fyc. : 

Sir, — Your favor of the 11th inst. is at hand, inviting me to attend, on the 
15th inst., a meeting of all parties who are in favor of supporting the Govern- 
ment and suppressing the rebellion. 

While public duties will detain me in this State, I beg leave to assure you of 
my cordial approval of the object of the meeting, and my undiminished confi- 
dence that the citizens of this Commonwealth will ever be found co-operating 
■with those of other States, in support of the Government, and that, under God, 
they will be successful in rescuing it from the power of the rebels, restore peace, 
and secure a higher degree of civil liberty than we have hitherto enjoyed. 

I ain, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

WM. A. BUCKINGHAM. 



99 

LETTER OF A. G. CURTIN, GOVERNOR OF PENNSYLVANIA. 

Executive CirAMBER, ) 

IIaurisburg, Fa., Juhi Iblk 18G2. j 
Gentlemen : 

My duties here will prevent me from being present at your meeting in New- 
York to-morrow, at which 1 should have been glad, if circumstances had per- 
mitted me, to assist. 

Pennsylvania has shown by her conduct how heartily she sympathizes with her 
sister loyal States. Our people regard this rebellion as a vile treason, devoid of 
all excuse or palliation, the hideous offspring of the malignity and spite which 
bad men in infi-rior and semi barbarous societies entertain against comiinmities 
which have surpassed them in all tiie elements of comfort, welfare and civiliza- 
tion. 1 think the popidar mind is fixed in the belief, that the one great present 
need is a due appreciation by our Government of the fact, that we are at war, 
and that it is its duty to use all the means for success which are recognized by 
the established laws of war, and especially to use freely fur military purposes 
every man on tlie" soil of the rebellious States who is willing to serve us. It 
is silly to waste our resources in the mere parade of war ; wu can arrive at no 
good result if that course he longer pursued. 

Repeating the expression of my regret at being unable to assist at your 
patriotic assemblage, 

I am, gentlemen. 

Your obedient servant, 

A. G. CURTIN. 



LETTER OF PRESTON KING, SENATOR FROM NEW-YORK. 

Washington, Juhj 12tli, 1862. 

Messrs. James White, Geo. Opdijkc, and others : 

Gentlemen, — Your invitation to me to address a mass meeting of all parties 
who are in favor of supporting the Government, in the prosecution of the war 
and suppressing the rebellion, to be held in the city of New-York, on Tuesday, 
the 15 ih instant, is received. My whole heart is in the cause your meeting is 
called to promote, and I wish I could be there, but public engagements here, that 
I cannot put aside, prevent my attendance. I thank you for the invitation. 

Very respectfully, 

PRESTON KING. 

LETTER OF LOT M. MORRILL, SENATOR FROM MAINE. 

Senate Chamber, Washington, Jidij 14//i, 18G2. 
Gentlemen : 

Bv your favor of the llth instant, I am informed that, " at a Convention of 
Comm'itees, severally appointed by the Common Council of this city ; by the 
Chamber of Commerce of the State of New-York ; by the Union Defence Com- 
mittee; and by bodies of loyal citizens of this city, it was resolyed to hold, on 
Tuesday, the 15th instant, a mass meeting of all parties who are in favor of sup- 
porting the Government in the prosecution of the war, and suppressing the re- 
bellion, and to express, without reference to any party question whatever, their 
undiminished confidence in the justice of the cause, and their inflexible determi- 
nation to sustain it, and to that' end to proffer to the government their aid to the 
extent of all their resources ; " and am invited to be present " to address the 
meeting upon its objects, and in the spirit in which it is convened." 

LofC. 



100 

While official diitios here compel me to decline the invitation, I cannot for- 
bear the expression, in a brief note, of my iinqualifiod commendation of the spirit 
and purpose of such a rcxnlntion. emanating from such a source. In this hour of 
peril, the country will hail it with exultation ; its lofty purpose and sentiment of 
patriotic devotion, will reanimate every loyal heart throughout the land. Assailed 
by a malignant domestic enemy, and menaced by " the malcontent and desperate " 
everywhere, the Government recjuires from all its friends, what you generously 
tender — unconditional and unwavering support, " in the prosecution of the war and 
suppressing the rebelUon." As no government was ever so beneficent, so liberal, 
so just, so none ever had such claims for su])port. Self-preservation, the dictates 
of prudence, the promptings of humanity, alike demand that the war should be 
conducted with terrible energy— witli tliat overmastering vigor which conies from 
the united efforts of a great people intent upon the vindication of the right. In 
this great national trial, reliance, under Providence, is upon the people. They 
need not only to be steadfast in their confidence of the justice of the cause, but 
united in its maintenance. May a generous enthusiasm for country animate all 
hearts, and the inspiration of a common purpose enable a firm and united people, 
with the pride of American citizens, to assert that, in spite of foes, domestic or 
foreign, '• the great Republic " still lives, and shall survive as the rich legacy of 
the past and tlie hope of the future. 

Very respecefully, 

Your obedient servant, 

LOT M. MORRILL. 

Hon. James W. White, and others. Committee. 



LETI'ER OF CHARLES SUMNER, SENATOR FROM MASSACHU- 
SETTS. 

Senate Chamber, Washington, JuIi/ 14///, 1862, 
Dear Sir : 

I welcome and honor your patriotic efforts to arouse the country to a 
generous, determined, irresistible unity in support of our Government ; but 
the Senate is still in session, and my present post of duty is here. A senator cannot 
leave his post more than a soldier. But, absent or present, the cause in which 
the people are to assemble has my God speed — earnest, devoted. affLctionate, 
from the heart. Wli-at I can do, let me do. There is no thing which 1 will not 
undertake, there is nothing which I will not renounce, if so I may serve my 
country. There must be unity of hands and of hearts, too, that tlie Republic 
may be lifted to the sublime idea of a true commonwealth, which, we are told, 
" ought to be as one huge Christian personage, one mighty growth and stature of 
an honest man, as big and compact in virtue as in body." Oh. sir. if my feeble 
voice could reach my fellow-countrymen in their workshops, in the streets, in the 
fields, and wherever they meet together ; if for one moment I could take to my 
lips that silver trumpet whose tones should sound and reverberate throughout the 
land, I would summon all. forgetting prejudice and turning away from error, to 
help unite, quicken and invigorate our common country — most beloved now that 
it is most imperiled — to a compactness and bignes s of virtue in just proportion 
to its extended dominion, so that it should be as one huge Cln-istian personage, 
one mighty growth and stature of an honest man, instinct with all the singleness 
of unity. Thus inspired, the gates of hell cannot jirevail against us. I'o this 
end the cries of faction must be silenced, and the wickedness of sedition, whether 
in print or in public speech, must be suppressed. These are the Northern 
allies of the rebellion. An aroused and indignant people, with iron heel, ought 
to tread them out like the serpent, so that they can neither hiss nor sting. 
With such a concord God will be pleased, and he will fight for us ; he will give 



101 

quickness to our armies, so that tlie liosts of the rebellion will be broken and 
scattered as by the tlninderbolt ; and he will give to our benelicent (jovcrnnient 
that blessed insi)iration, better than any newly raised levies, by which the 
rebellion shall be struck in its single vnlnerable part, by which that long 
cherished al)()niination which was its orignal mainspring and is its present motive 
power shall be ovt'rthrown : and by which the cause of the Union shall be linked 
with that Divine justice whose weapons are of celestial t«>mper. (Jod bless our 
country! and tied bless all who now serve it with singleness of heart I 

I have the honor to be, dear sir, 

Your faithful servant, 

CHARLES SUMNER. 

LETTER OF M. F. ODELL, REPRESENTATIVE FRO.M NEW- YORK. 

Washington. Julij 14///, 18G2. 
Cliarle^ Gould, Secrdurij, and otiieis. 

Gentlemen, — 1 am in receipt of your invitation to attend and address a mass 
meeting to be held to-morrow, the Llth inst., in New- York city. 

It would be my pleasure to attend, but ray duties here will prevent. You 
propose a gathering of men of all parties. Never, in my judgment, since the 
first rebel gun was fired, have there been reasons so strong as at this hour when 
all loyal and patriotic men should combine their energies to crush out. and put 
down forever, the foes of the Union. Whatever may have been our diiferences 
of opiniim in relation to measures or policy, it must be evident to all good men, 
that this country can be saved and the Luiion maintained, by sustaining the gov- 
ernment in its efforts to put down this rebellion. I have no doubt as to the 
results of this conflict. Our cause is just and right, and I believe there is a de- 
termination deep down in the hearts of the people to crush out this monster ; 
hence I have confidence that men and means will be forthcoming as they are 
needed. I believe further, that it will be done with no compromises, until the 
last rebel shall ground bis arms. 

Yours, truW, 

M. F. ODELL. 



LETTER OF EDWARD HATGHT, REPRESENTATIVE FROM 
NEW-YORK. 

Washington City, Jidij 14//;, 1862. 
Charles Gould, Esq., Scc'r/ of Select Committee, and others : 

Gentlemen, — ^I ani just in receipt of your invitation to attend a meeting of 
loyal citizens, on Tuesday next, and only regret that my duties here will prevent 
my being present in person. I most heartily, however, accord with the emphatic 
language of the call, and have no doubt, as to the hearty and cheerful response 
of the people to stop the l/fe-hlood of the nation, now rapidly flowing away. 

The destiny and restoration of the Union is certain, and the opportunity to 
assist in its consummation, will be one, (if taken advantage of,) that will redound 
to the honor and credit of the participant for ages yet to come. 

To preser\e the Constitution and the Union, in their unity and integrity, to 
vindicate in crer// par/ of this Republic, one and indivisible, its supreme law, 
should be the paramount object of every loyal citizen. 

Pledging untiring exertions to accomplish that end, 

I am, gentlemen, very truly, yours, 

EDWARD HAIGHT. 

M. C. 9lh Cong. Dist., N. Y. 



102 

LETTER OF ALFRED ELY, REPRESENTATIVE FROM NEW-YORK. 

House of Representatives. [ 
Washington, D. C, Juhj litli, 18G'2. ( 
Charles Gould, Esq. ; 

Sir, — I duly received the letter addressed to me on the 11th instant, by a Com- 
mittee of whicli you are Secretary, and which was constituted by the Common 
Council of New- York city, hy the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New- 
York, by the Union Defence Committee, and by bodies of loyal citizens of New- 
York city, invitini;- me to address, to-morrow, amass meeting in your city, of all 
parties who are in favor of supporting the Government in the prosecution of the 
war, and suppressing tlie rebellion. 

I regret that my {)ublic duties will not allow me to accept this invitation. 
Congress is just upon the eve of an adjournment, and the transaction of the im- 
portant bu:iness still before it, requires that a quorum of its members should 
remain here. 

It would give me the greatest pleasure to be present to witness such an out- 
pouiing of the citizens of the commercial metropolis of the nation as I anticipate 
from their well-tried and unshaken loyalty, to testify " their undiminished confi- 
dence in the justice of the cause'' in which we are engaged, and '' their inflexible 
determination to sustain it." Such expressions as this mass meeting is designed 
to give, accompanied by the " proffer to the Government,'' by the people of the 
city of New-York, of '• their aid to the extent of all their resources," will be of 
incalculable benefit to the country at home and abroad. It will silence faction 
among ourselves, and demonstrate to European powers that our front to the 
enemy is still solid and unbroken. 

Begging you to accept for yourself and the Committee, and for their several 
constituencies, the assurances of my respect, I remain, sir, truly yours. 

ALFRED ELY. 



[ 



LETTER OF ROSCOB CONKLING, REPRESENTATIVE FROM 

NEW-YORK. 

House of Representatives, 
Washington, July I4:th. 1862. 

Gentlemen, — The duties resting upon a Representative in the closing hours 
of the present session, require me to be constantly in my seat. Were I at liberty 
to accept the invitation with which you have honored me, it would give me great 
pleasure to address a mass meeting of your citizens on 'J'uesday next. 

Although debarred the privilege of participating in your proceedinizs, I shall 
regard them with an interest not likely ever again to attach to any similar occa- 
sion. 

The exigencies and demands of the hour give to public action at this moment 
an importance which cannot now be realized. A great future is enshrouded in a 
little period immediately before us. Tlie fate of our country depends upon the 
alacrity of its citizens. Your great metropolis has the leading part in the sacri- 
fices, and the duties which av.'ait us. 

The imperial j)osition of our State was never shown so conspicuously ; her re- 
sources and munificence have never been so indispensable to the whole nation, as 
since the outbreak of the present rebellion. The position New- York shall now as- 
sume will exert a commanding influence upon tlie final issue of our luitioiuxi diffi- 
culties, and the action of the meeting on Tuesday, will do much to awaken feel- 
ing throughout the State. 

Let the city s])eak in emphatic tones in favor of sparing nothing that stands in 
the way of crushing treason at home, and repelling insolence from abroad. The 
meeting is timely, and I wi.sh it complete success. 

I have the honor to be, your obedient servant, 

ROSCOE CONKLING. 

Hon. James W. White, and others. Committee. 



108 

LETTER OF SCHUYI.ER COLFAX, REPRESENTATIVE FROM 

INDIANA. 

House of Rkpresentatives. ) 
Washington City, Ja/i/ 14///, 18G2. f 
My Dear Sir : 

I thiink you for the lioiior conferred on nic by the fomnuttee of which you are 
Secretary, inviting me to address the meeting of the loyal citizens of my native city 
to-morrow, and assure you of my regret that public duties will prevent my attend- 
ing. I doubt not that the Empire City will speak on that occasion in a manner 
and with an empliasis that will be heard and heeded througliout the entire Re- 
public, as well as beyond the Atlantic ; and that will prove tluit our country, 
doubly dear to us now, not only by the sacrifices of those who founded it, but by 
the more recent sacrifices of the brave soldiers who have defended it against 
traitors, is dearer to us all in its hour of trial than in its brightest era of peace 
and prosperity. 

I cannot give you my opinion of the duty of this eventful hour in briefer terms 
than the following resolution, which I bad the honor to offer at a largely attended 
Congressional caucus last Saturday evening, and which was adopted with grati- 
fying unanimity : 

•■ Resolved. 'Fhat we hold it to be the duty of all loyal men to stand by the 
LTninn in this hour of its trial — to unite their hearts and hands in earnest and 
patriotic efforts for its maintenance against those who are in arms against it — to 
sustain, with determined resolution, our patriotic President and his administra- 
tion in their most energetic efforts for the prosecution of tlie war and the preser- 
vation of the Union against enenues at home and abroad — to punish traitors and 
treason with fitting severity— ami to so crush the present wicked and causeless 
rebellion that no flag of disunion shall ever again be raised over any ])ortion of 
the Republic. That, to this end, we invite the co-operation of all men who love 
their country in the endeavor to rekindle throughout all the States such a [latriotic 
fire as shall utterly consume all who strike at the Union oF our Fatliers, and all 
who sympathize with their treason or palliate their guilt " 

Very trulv, yours, 

SCHUYLER COLFAX. 

Chas. Gould, Esq., Secretary, tVc, S^c. 



LETTER FROM COMMODORE ANDREW H. FOOTE. 

New Have.v, July Utii, 1862. 
My Dear Sir : 

Your kind letter, as a member of the committee on invitations and speakers at 
the mass meeting to be held in New- York, on Tuesday next, for the purpose of 
inciting a deeper interest in the public mind toward the prompt supply of men 
and means for crushing this atrocious rebellion, has been received. 

I deeply regret that an imperative sense of duty to the Government, as well as 
to myself, prevents my complying with your invitation to be present and address 
the citizens of the great metropolis on such a momentous occasion. Still suffer- 
ing from the effects of my wound received at Fort Donelson, although rapidly 
improving in health, my physicians have enjoined upon me the necessity of 
repose of mind and body for the present, as essential in enabling me to return at 
an early day to active service in the war. 

We owe it to our honor as a nation, to our children and posterity, to transmit 
to them, if needs be with our blood and treasure, the preservation of the most 
free and beneficent government ever established upon the earth. Shall the 
North, with her twenty millions and untold resources, pusillanimously yield to 
six millions of miserable rebels in arms ? No ! death itself would be preferable 



104 

to mon who have any claim to manhood. Let every citizen, then, rush to the 
field, or furnish a substitute, to enable the heroic and accomplished leader of the 
Army of the Potomac, who is now awaiting reinforcements only, to strike the 
final l>low in crushing forever this atrocious rebellion. 

Let the ladies of Xew-York continue to give their support to this glorious 
cause. They are all potent in persuasive influence ; but in instances where this 
fails, let them decline — spurn — the attentions of all young men who remain at 
home when they might be in the fight vindicating the honor of our flag, until 
these young men shall present themselves aa having done their part on the 
battle-field toward transmitting the rich legacy of such a Government as theindo- 
mital)le courage of the fathers of our republic have bequeathed to their children. 

Let the \orth but appreciate the crisis, and trusting in the Grod of battles, we 
will hurl defiance at our enemies, internal and external. 

I am, respectfully, and very truly, yours, 

ANDREW II. FOOTE. 

Chas. Goui-d, Esq., New- York. 

LETTER OF GEN. LEWIS WALLACE. 

POUGHKEEPSIE, N. Y., JuJ ij 11th, 1862. 
Chris. Gould, Esq., Secretartj, dc. 

Dear Sir, — The note from the Select Committee inviting me to address the 
meeting in your city on the 1.5th instant, has just reached me. 
I regret it did not come in time to enable me to comply. 
The army needs recruitment badly, and I am greatly pleased at the manner it 
is taken hold of in New-York. 

Be kind enough to inform the committee why their favor was not sooner an- 
swered. Very respectfully, sir, 

Your friend and servant, 

LEWIS WALLACE. 



LETTER OF A. D. BACHE, SUPERINTENDENT OF UNITED 

STATES COAST SURVEY. 

Coast Sdrvey Office, ) 

Washington, D. C, Jahj Uth, 1862. j" 
Gentlemen : 

I thank you cordially for the opportunity you give me of being present at the 
meeting of ■' loyal citizens," on Tuesday, the loth instant. Every one of your 
wafchwords touch the very depths of my heart. No party, but the whole 
country. A union of all for the support of the Government in an energetic 
prosecution of the war for the suppression of the rebellion, Undiminished 
confidence in the justice of the cause. Inflexible determination to sustain it. 
Aid to the Government to the extent of all resources of mind, body and estate. 
How must such words stir the souls of all loyal citizens ! How nmch I regret 
that I may not, consistently with pressing duties, enjoy the enthusiasm of this 
mass meeting. 

The corps to which I belong is dispersed among the army and navy expe- 
ditions in Virginia, North and South Carolina, Florida and Louisiana, lending 
the aid of their miimte local knowledge freely to the army and navy expeditions. 
After this service they will be ready to contiime maps of the coast and to con- 
tribute personal information which will be useful in case of intirvention, as that 
already contributed has been against rebellion. All these men would be de- 
lighted to be counted as particles in the mass meeting of loyal citizens. All unite 
with me in three times three cheers for the watchwords of your committee. 

Very respectfullv vours, 

" A. D. BACHE. 
James W. White, George Opdykr, Samuel Sloan, Prosper M. Wetmoke, 
Denning Duer, Charles Gould, Select Committee. 



105 

LETTER FROM REV. H. W. BELLOWS, PRESIDENT OF SAN- 
ITARY COMMISSION. 

Washington-, D. C, Juhj 12M, 18G2. 
/. W. White, Geu. Opdi/fcr, ^x. 

Gentlemen, — I regret that my previous engatjenients, whicli carry me to 
another section of our troubled country, will not permit me to accept your invi- 
tation to address the ])eople of New-York at the mass meeting' of loyal citizens 
on the loth instant. I should rejoice to participate in that important meeting. 
The 7nasses are the great constituents of those who are waging this defence of 
democratic institutions against the assavilts of the proudest aristocracy in the 
world. It is not slavery, but the aristocratic spirit of feudalism, which simply 
finds its accidental expression in negro slavery, which is now making its last and 
most bloody struggle (in modern history) in this civil war. AVe are fightinc: the 
poor man's, the working-man's, the foreign emigrant's, the mechanic's, the clerk's 
battle. Their last battle for political and social equality. Feudalism on the other 
side of the water, in all her various shapes — French, English, and Austrian — hates 
our prospect of success, and loves every rebel who strikes us with bullet or bayonet, 
as if he were in her own employ. But, if we have the aristocrats of the whole 
world agidnst us. we have the people of the whole world with us ! AYe are fight- 
ing against thrones and principalities and powers — fighting for equal rights, the 
poor man's liberties, the dignity of labor, and the principle of self-government. 
We are fighting for the gospel of Christ, in its political expression, against the 
religions of caste and the hierarchies of birth and blood. When the people /;noi« 
this, every man will drop his quill, his last, his spade, his hannner. his hod, his 
ledger, his comfort, his party prejudices, his home and his fortune, to enlist! 
That is the thing to do, and to do at once. It is the only practical proof of 
patriotism that ought to be accepted from an able-bodied man, between twenty 
and forty, at this crisis of liberty and democratic existence. 

Yours, with utmost sympathy, 

H. W. BELLOWS. 



LETTER OF EDWARD EVERETT. 

Boston, Uth Jul;/, 1862. 
Charles Gould, Esq. : 

Dear Sir, — I received, a moment since, a copy of your circular of the llth, 
inviting me to attend a mass meeting of loyal citizens, of all parties, in New- York, 
to-morrow. It would give me great pleasure, if it were in my power, to take part 
in a meeting, called in the great Metropolis of the Union, for the patriotic pur- 
poses indicated in the circular ; but my ofBcial duty as a member of the Board 
of Overseers of Harvard College, requires me to be at Cambridge on Commence- 
ment day, the I 6th. 

New- York needs no voice from abroad to cheer her in the path of duty, at this 
momentous crisis. 

I remain, dear sir, very respectfully, yours, 

EDWARD EVERETT. 



LETTER OF JOHN A KING. 

Jamaica, L. I., /;</// 14///, 1862. 

Charles Gould, Esq., Secretary/ of Committee of Loyal Citizens : 

Dear Sir, — I beg to acknowledge and thank you for the invitation to address 
the meeting of loyal citizens, to-morrow afternoon, in the city of New-York. Con- 
curring fully in the patriotic object and purposes of the meeting, I hope to be 
present on the occasion, but must ask to be excused from taking an active part 
in the proceedings of the meeting. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 

JOHN A. KING. 
14 



106 

LETTER OF LYMAN TREMAIN. 

Albany, July lAth, 1862. 
Gent. : 

I am in receipt of your invitation to ad '.ess the mass meeting to be helJ on 
the 15th instant. 

It gives me great pleasure to loam liat such a meeting is called. I trust it 
will be worthy of the great city wheru it will be held, worthy of the occasion, and 
of the noble cause in whose service it will be convened. 

I regret to say that an engagement to address a similar meeting in this city, 
the same evening, will put it beyond my power to attend. 

Yours truly, 



Chas. Gould, P^sq , Sec. i)x. 



LYMAN TREMAIN. 



LETTER OF WM. M. EYARTS. 

Windsor, Yt., July 1 5th, 1862. 
Dear Sir: 

The invitation of your committee to address the great meeting, to be held to- 
day, in the city of New-York, reached me too late for this answer, even, to be in 
time for the occasion. 

The enthusiastic rally at Union Square, on the twentieth of April of last year, 
demonstrated the wisdom and courage of our people in instantly meeting the 
war, which had been opened against the Government by the armed rebellion, 
with all the strength and energy which thorough and united purpose and abun- 
dant material resources cou!d supply. From that moment the people have 
taken no step backvvard, and there has been more occasion for solicitude that 
they would run over the Government than that they would not keep up 
with its movements and demands, 1 have no fears now, that the I'esponse of the 
people to the new call for troops, will be either sluggish or inadequate. 

Whether in the past, the Government has fully understood the stern simplicity 
of this contest — to which only two issues, the destruction of its enemy or of itself, 
were ever possible; whether it has recognized its true enemj' — the rebel aristo- 
cracy—and appreciated the depth and force of the pas^ions and interests which 
have stimulated their hatred and support their hostilities ; whether it has wisely 
and effectively employed the immense power which the devotion of the people 
has laid at its feet ; — these are questions unsuited to the situation of our .iffairs. 
" Forgetting the things that are behind " we " mu>t press forward," and be satisfied 
with knowing and insisting that, in the future, the sentiments and action of the 
Government will be, and shall be, clear, decisive and concentrated ; seeking, what 
thus seeking it is sure to accompli.-'h. the rapid and complete reduction, by 
military power, of the revolted territory and population to allegiance to their and 
our Constitution. 

I know that there are loyal, intelligent and earnest lovers of their country, 
who conceive that they have no part or heart in this war, if it be not so directed 
that the social institution of s'aveiy shall not survive it, and others who imagine 
that they will not help put down the rebellion if slavery is to fall with it. But 
these opinions gocovi no considerable number of the loyal population ; and, indeed, 
if those who profess the one or the other of them, were put to the test. 1 am 
persuaded that the Flag and the Constitution would lose few of them as 
defenders. 

Anil now it is prochiiraed, as with a trumpet, throughout the land, to rebels 
and to loyal men alike, that the buiden and the heat of the war are upon us ; 
that our manhood and our birthright are iu the issue ; and that the sun which 



107 

sets upon tliis day of oiir trial, will look upon us a proud, a happy, a free, a pow- 
erful nation, or a rent, distracted, cruslied, despised people. 

How foolish and feeble a conception of Die fates that this war carries, have 
they, who regard it as a contest iiivolviiio-. only, the extent of territory and of 
population wliich our (Government shall maintain dominion over. A nmtilated 
territory and a dismembered people are results suiliciently intolerable to our 
pride and our interests. But the disastrous event of this war stops at no 
such measure of calamity. The Federal Constitution itsi'lf will have been rent 
in twain, and the fabric of our National liberties will have passed away as a 
scroll. The noble heritage which the wisdom and conrai>;-(; of heroic ancestors 
gained for us will have been wrested from our feeble and faithless hands. For 
this, our self-abasement, there will be "no cure, no aft(n'-]iealtli, no pardon." 

I believe that the people understand this momentous issue, and that their 
hearts thrill with the intensity of the emotions its contemplation begets. Have 
we, by Divine favor, the power to avert this ruin and maintain the life; of the 
Nation ? This power can be none other tlian military and financial resources, 
and the wisdom and courage to apply them. 

The mass of the population supporting the Government, and counting as the 
supply of its military and financial strength, numbers about twenty-three mil- 
lions, of which something like a million are slaves. The miiss of the population 
arrayed in revolt is over eiglit millions, of which three millions are slaves. We 
thus stand four to one of the free population of tlie country, ibr the Govern- 
ment. Are these five millions of free whites, mounted on the shoulders of three 
million black slaves, able to predominate over our twenty millions of free whites, 
in battle and in war, as they have done in politics and in peace? Jf they are, 
they had better be dismounted. 

But the question carries its own answer. If. on our part, the battles are still 
political, and the war peaceful, this treason will overthrow our Government. If 
we are to save the lives, the property, the feelings and the pride of the rebels, 
and waste only the lives, the courage and the strength of the loyal people, we 
are the allies of the rebels, not their enemies, and undermine, from within, the 
citadel, which they assault from without. 

If. on the other hand, we will dismiss politics and peace from our minds and 
from our hearts ; if our advancing armies shall treat the population in revolt, 
whether black or white, slave or free, as rvar groups them — as i-ebel or as loyal, as 
hostile or as submissive ; if the Government will execute the simple policy, " par- 
cere suhjectis. debel/are snperbos," — root out the haughty aristocricy that urges on 
the rebellion, and spare the abject ft)llowers it has cheated wnd forced into its 
support, '• the hand of the Government will be in the neck of its enemies." We 
shall see this treason crouch and cower under the thunderbolts of war, and the 
leaders of the revolt strangled in the cruel rage with which the terrified and suf- 
fering masses will seek for victims, to save themselves and make peace with the 
Government. 

Thus far the weakness of our sentiments has been the strength of the rebel- 
lion. The battles of the Peninsula— so glorious to our soldiery — have made 
any further feebleness of purpose, or random aim, impossible, but at the cost of 
the nation's life. The Government and the people are now thoroughly aroused, 
thoroughly informed. Our rulers will lead, and we shall follow, fa'^t and far. 
Everything is full of courage and strength, and the tide of war will never ebb 
till we are, again, one people, with one Constitution and one destiny. 

I cannot be at your meeting, but in the earnest and patriotic activity which 
will there receive new impulse, I shall give every aid of time, of money, and of 
labor which shall be in my power. 

I am, with great respect to yourself and the Committee, 

Tour obedient servant, 

WM. M. EVARTS. 
To Chas. Gould, Esq., Secretary, ^c. 



108 

LETTER OF JAMES T. BRADY. 

New-York, Jidij Ibth, 1862. 
Hon. George Opkyke : 

Dkar vSir, — I regret tliat I will uot be able to address my fellow-citizens at the 
Union Meeting called for this afttraoon, being troubled with an affection of the 
throat, which prevents my making such au effort as would be required to speak 
before a large assemblage, in the open air. 

I am sorry that some of our countrymen are so prone to despond or complain, 
because we do not triumph in every encounter with our opponents, and tliat the 
appreciation of great victories in the past, is lost in mourning over the discom- 
fitures of the hour. 

It is (juite likely that errors have been committed in the conduct of the present 
war. By whom, when, and how, will all be certainly made known hereafter. We 
have no time now for lamentations or complaints. The whole of our thoughts and 
efforts should be applied in vigorously devoting the power of the present, so as to 
secure prosperity in the future. We are engaged in a war with men who display a 
fierce resolution to overcome us by force of arms. If we do not defeat them, they 
will defeat us. Our course is, therefore, very plain. We should cheerfully and ener- 
getically sustain the Government in putting down the rebellion, and restoring our 
national authority. For this purpose more men are required. I'hey must and 
will be furnished. No fear of consequences, such as might offend our political 
opinions, should for one moment obstruct this exhibition of loyalty. AVe did not 
invite nor begin the war. ^Ve sought to prevent a calamity so dire It is the 
work of ambitions and bad leaders at the South, whose defeat and disgrace will 
surely come. AVhen we succeed, as we ultimately shall, then, and not before, 
will be the time to decide upon all the grave political questions which may arise 
out of the conflict now progressing, or the cause which produced it. 'I'he su- 
premacy of our laws is indispensable to ensure a full and free discussion of those 
questions at the South. It is quite obvious tbat we must have more troops, not 
only to meet the present exigencies, but also to provide for those which may 
hereafter arise. It is well to prepare for foreign intervention, although I see 
little cause for apprehending such an occurrence. France is not in a condition 
to neglect her own affairs, and attend to ours. England has not for many years 
shown much eagerness to engage in hostilities with a formidable power. I am 
loth to believe tliat any large number of the English people will be found as ma- 
lignant, false, or vacillating as the London Tunes. Jf intervention by a foreign 
government is ever to happen, I wish it would occur now, while our people have 
their military spirit aroused. Such a wicked assault upon us would call into the 
field every man on our soil who was capable of bearing arms. And it is not 
likely that if France, for the first time, appeared as our enemy, in a foul alliance 
with Britain, the continent would look on with entire indifference, and furnish us 
no aid against ancient enemies. Let us have an army under whose protection we 
can safely and decently announce, that while we seek no (juarrel with any nation, 
neither will we avoid one, when to do so would, in the slightest degree, impair our 
strength, prosperity, or honor. 

For my own part, 1 have confidence in the intelligence, patriotism and judg- 
ment of the President and his cabinet, although in saying this I do not mean to 
assert that the course adopted by him or them has, in every instance, been the 
wisest or best for the occasion. I have confidence in General McClellan. I 
know that, however foes or slanderers may assail him, he has, and will have, to 
sustain him in every event, the gratitude, admiration, and love of the masses. 
1'ime will confirm this statement, if there be now one reason to discredit it. 

I have no doubt, whatever, that we are to win the fight in which we are engaged. 
It may be protracted ; it may involve unparalleled outlay of treasure, loss of life, 
and suffering. Hui, dreadful at these consequences are, we must encounter them 
all to preserve the republic, keep unsullied the honor of our flag, and prevent the 
coming of a time when it may truly be said that there is no such power on earth 
as •' The United States of America." 



109 

We are solving tlie great problem whether a free government, founded on the 
free action of the people, can be permanently maintained. In the solution of that 
question, it is not alone the American people, or this generation, tliat is interested. 
It deeply concerns the whole world. It is to affect the happiness of races and' 
generations to come. That is one reason why the natives of so many lands nobly 
unite with the American, in the struggle for our success. Let all who feel a 
desire that we should triumph, forget everything else in the enthusiastic en- 
deavor to make that triumph certain. 

Yours, truly, 

JAMES T. BRADY. 



LETTER OF RICHARD BUSTLED, ESQ. 

New- York, Julij \2fh, 18G2, ) 
237 Broadway. \ 

Hon. James W. IVhitc, Geo. Opdyke, Samuel Sloan, Prosper M. Wetmore, Dennino- 
Duer, Charles Gould, Select Committee, ifc. : 

Gentlemen, — -I regret it is not in my power to accept your invitation to ad- 
dress the mass meeting to be held in this city on tlie 15th inst. Circumstances 
wholly beyond my control, will prevent me the pleasure I would derive from 
being present to swell the chorus of patriotism which on that day will ari,-e from 
the great heart of loyal New- York, in support of the Government, and in unmis- 
takable rebuke of treason and traitors at home, and malignets and meddlers 
abroad. 

Be assured, gentlemen, of my entire sympathy in the movement. I regard it 
as a step in the right direction, and rejoice that there is among our people, an 
"inflexible determination to sustain" the Government, without reference to 
mere political views, and looking only to the re-establishment of its power over 
every acre of its soil, and every one of its subjects. 

The time is when party must be lost sight of in the higher claims of duty and 
fealty to country. Who falters now in these, let him henceforward be distrusted, 
let his name be a byword and a scorn, let him live in shame and die in dishonor. 
Let it be understood and declared that, 

" Freedom's soil has only place 
For a free and fearless race ; 
None for traitors false and base.'' 

In this terrible struggle for life, we must not fail. Our shortcoming would 
justly be accounted treason to the race, and impiety to God. We cannot fail 
but by being false to the commonest instincts of honor and pride. Let no true 
man carp now. No real patriot will retard the success of our cause either by 
personal supineness, or by indulging in criticisms upon the Government, which 
have the effect of antagonisms. Let it be left to our enemies to cavil, while we 
bear proudly aloft, and hold up to the wistful gaze of the world, the standard of 
Constitutional Freedom, symbolized by an unimpaired American nationality. 

With great respect. 

Your fellow-citizen. 

RICHARD BUSTEED. 



[ 



no 

LETTER OF REV. J. P. THOMPSON. 

No. 32 West Thirty-sixth street, 

July im, 4 P. M., 1862. 

Dear Sir : 

The invitatiou of the Select Committee of the Chamber of Commerce, to ad' 
dress the mass meeting at Union Square, to-morrow, has just come to hand- 
]\Iost gladly would I contribute in any way to the object of that meeting — the 
support of the Government in suppressing the rebellion — an object to" which I 
am ready to devote time, means, labor, children, whatever I possess or can in- 
fluence for so great a cause. All that is dear to us for ourselves and our chil- 
dren, all that is dear to us as friends of freedom and of humanity, all that is dear 
to us as Christians, seeking to establish and to perfect upon this w^estern conti- 
nent a civilization founded upon public virtue and equity, the fear of God and 
the riglits of man ; all of value from the past, of good in the present, of hope for 
the future — demands that this atrocious rebellion be subdued, and its more 
atrocious cause be utterly exterminated. 

Yours truly, 

JOS. P. THOMPSON. 

Ch.\s. Gould, Esq. 



LETTER OF GEORGE GIBBS, OF WASHINGTON TERRITORY. 

Washington City, July 13th, 1862. 
Sir: 

I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your invitation to address the 
mass meeting of loyal citizens in Union Square, New-York, on 15th inst. I re- 
gret that official business prevents my accepting the call. Let me assure you, 
however, that though no one may officially represent the Territory of ^Vashington 
at the contemplated meeting, I can answer for the truth and fidelity of her people 
to the Union, without question and without qualification. 

I am sir, very truly, 

Your obedient servant, 

GEORGE GIBBS. 
Charles Gould, Esq., Secretary. 



OPINIONS OF THE PRESS, 



[Froin the New-York World, Juhj 1 (;;//.] 

The grand demonstration at Union Square, yesterday afternoon, was a 
gathering- in every way worthy of the great cause that had 'called it forth. An 
hour previous to the time named for the meeting, the Park was crowded with 
men and women anxious to secure eligible positions, where they could sit in 
the shade and listen tu the music for the Union. 

From the hotels and housetops, and from the churches, the stars and stripes 
were displayed with the utmost profusion. The windows looking from the 
residences upon all sides of the Sijuare were thrown up, and the balconies front- 
ing them filled with ladies and children, whose presence served greatly to add 
to the animation of the scene below. Broadway and the otiier thoroughfares 
leading to the Square were thronged with the multitudes who had closed their 
stores and work?hop3 to attend the meeting. Every class and trade were repre- 
sented. 'J"he wealthy mil'ionaire, who had left the luxuries of a well-filled table 
and dashed up in a splendid equipage, had come prepared to counsel with the 
hard-fisted laborer who had left mattock and spade, crow-bar and Ijarrow, to de- 
vise mtans for maintaining the Union ; and the voices of both were unanimous 
that " it must and shall be preserved." 

The stands were ranged in numerical order, beginning with No. 1, at the 
monument, passing round the Square in a north-wes'terly direction, and terminat- 
ing with No. 5. They were substantial structures, and beautifully draped with 
bunting, the stars and stripes being conspicuous over all. Around these the crowd 
began to assemble at half-past three o'clock ; and from that moment the num- 
bers increased until the hour of adjournment. 'I"he utmost enthusiasm prevailed 
upon all sides. Bands of music were playing at intervals, and Anthon's Light 
Battery boomed forth a welcome to the coming thousands who were marshaling 
from town and country in a common cause. As the gathering grew more dense, 
the cars on the Fourth Avenue Railroad ceased running — it being impossible for 
them to get through. The Broadway stages ran off their line also, the entire 
space occupied by the Square being given up unreservedly to the purposes of the 
meeting. Prominent in the assemblage were the veterans of the war of 1812, in 
uniform, their swords buckled on as if ready for another contest, and their voices 
urging the young men everywhere to enlist. 

At four o'clock the workingmen from the lower wards came up en inas.se, and 
shortly afterward the "jackets of blue " from the Navy Yard made their appear- 
ance ; also the ship-carpenters at work on the Union gun-boats, the workmen 
from Singer's sewing-machine manufactory, and those employed by Henry 
Brewster k Co. ; these latter a.ssisting to work the Anthon Battery. 

The New England Soldiers' Relief Association had two huge wagons, one 
drawn by eight horses and the other by four horses, covered with flags, both 
laden with patriotic hearts, au.xious with the rest to help on the great cause of 
crushing the rebellion. 

It was a mass meeting in every sense of the word. The presence of 100,000 
men stamped it as earnest, and likely to be productive of untold results. It was 
a mass meeting in point of numbers, of wealth, of class, of respectability, and, 
above all, of loyalty and devotion to the grand old Union, Even the boys iu the 



112 

street paraded in uniform, waving the American flag, and cheering the patriotic 
utterances of their elders. Looking from the several stands, the eye encountered 
a sea of faces not commonly met at great gatlnTiiigs. Th^-re was an almost utter 
absence of h-vity and disorder. Every countenance said plainly tliat its owner 
had come there with an earnest purpose ; that the time for trifling had passed ; 
that the great crisis was at hand ; and, by the help of God and their own right 
arms, that they meant to meet the issue as became American freemen, worthy to 
preserve the liberties transmitted them by their fathers. 



[From the Evening Post, July IGt/i.] 

If the great meeting of April, 1861, was more numerous and enthusiastic than 
that of yesterday, it was because the nation then felt the first glow of its 
patriotic ardor. But, with the exception of that grand outbreak, no meeting 
ever hi'ld in the city has surpassed the one of yesterday in grandeur and life. A 
sea of men and women filled the vast spaces around Union Square, so that 
streets, sidewalks, balconies and windows were filled, while the proceedings were 
marked throughout by the utmost animation. In the eloquent speeches of 
(jieneral VValbridge, Judge Daly, Dr. Hitchcock, Mr. Coddington, Delafield Smith, 
and others, there was a noble utterance of the grand pervading sentiment of the 
occasion. 

We have given elsewhere such reports of the speeches and doings as our 
space admits, and we design In this column merely to record impressions 
produced upon us by a careful observation of the masses assembled. The war 
impulse is apparently as vigorous and determined as it ever was ; the devotion of 
the people to the Union is as strong ; but this patriotic zeal is tempered by a 
greater thoughtfulness. A year ago we were ready to rush into battle without 
preparation, and despising the enemy like a troop of headlong boys, who love 
excitement and are reckless of consequences. But at this time, though we are 
no less determined to fight, we desire to do so with a distinct object and a care^ 
ful estimate of the means. We have learned from experience that our enemy, 
being of our own blood, is no despicable opponent ; we know his desperation ; 
and we feel that he is only to be overcome by the most strenuous and persistent 
efforts. We cannot play with him any longer, and if we fight him we must 
fight him in grim and deadly earnest. We must not stand on trifles if we 
mean to put down the rebellion speedily and forever. 

The single result of this great assemblage has been to express the necessity of 
a more active and stringent prosecution of hostilities. >i'o other opinion was 
uttered ; no other sentiment tolerated. A drunken fellow near Fremont's stand 
began to mutter something about •' abolitionists," but he was instantly silenced 
by the cry that the war must go on at all hazards, and by every means in our 
power. No one tries to revive those old partisan cries who is not in the interest 
of secession, while loyal men and women everywhere will echo the resolve of 
this gigantic congregation, to urge " upon the Government the exercise of its 
utmost skill and vigor in the prosecution of this war, unity of design, compre- 
hensiveness of plan, a uniform policy and a stringent use of all the means within 
its reach, consistent with the usages of civilized warfare." 



[F^io/n the Coniinercial Advertiser, July 10. | 

The gathering of the loyal people of this city at Union Square, yesterday after- 
noon, exceeded the expectations of the most sanguine. In numbers, character 



113 

and exalted pati-iotisni, it has had no j)arall('l on tliis continent. The siglit of 
the congregated thoiisancls was calculated to make a New-Yorker feel prond of his 
citizenship. The uiianiniity of sentiment was niarvelou.s. One loyal pulse beat 
through the whole mass. One foolish man, apparently of foreign birth, ]iaraded 
the crowd with a white pocket-kerchief attached to a walking cane, and could 
not conceal his mortification that he was met everywhere by a smile of conteniyjt. 
At length, however, somebody gave him a hint that he had made a fool of him- 
self long enough, and lie was glad of an excuse to " skedaddle." We have said 
that the unanimity of the multitudinous gathering was marvelous, and we may 
add that the universal sentiment was that the Federal (Jovernment should be 
supported in the extremest measures that might be deemed necessary for speedily 
as well as effectually putting down the infamous revolt of tluj Southern States. 

One naturally connects the meeting of yesterday with the great Union meet- 
ing held in the same place when first the news was received that the rebels of 
Charleston had commenced war against the United States by their attack upon 
Fort Sumter and its feeble garrison. In some respects there was a similarity 
between the two meetings, but in other respects a material difference. That of 
yesterday was much the larger, as we affirm on personal observation. This was 
scarcely to be anticipated, considering what liberal contributions the Empire 
City has made to the Federal army. 'I'he fact, however, is suggestive. In the 
former meeting a universal excitement had suddenly seized upon the community, 
and every man who loved his country felt all the maddening anguish of the instdt 
offered to its flag, without any realization of the sacrifice that would have to be 
made before that insult could be properly resented and punished. Yesterday 
loyal men came together, after having not only counted the cost of vindicating 
the country's honor, but having themselves in their persons, their property or 
their families, actually borne a share of such sacrifice. And yet were the people 
yesterday even more determined and enthusiastic in their patriotism and de- 
votion to the Union than were those in April last. 

"N'or can we withhold our testimony respecting another important feature of 
yesterday's meeting. That vast multitude most unmistakably declared them- 
selves in favor of increased vigor in the prosecution of the war, and of greater 
severity of treatment to those in arms against the Federal Government. And 
the speakers were manifestly of the same mind. All felt and said that lenity was 
thrown away upon the vindictive men who have sought, for their own aggran- 
dizement, the severance of this glorious Union. Men heretofore proverbial for 
their conservatism— public men who have in days past counseled the exhaustion 
of all conciliatory measures that could be employed without sacrifice of dignity 
and right on the part of the Federal Government — merchants whose commercial 
connection with the South has not unnaturally rendered them averse to extreme 
measures against the rebels. — prominent politicians, whose party sympathies and 
party hopes have been bound up with the South — all yesterday agreed and em- 
phatically declared that the Government must no longer hesitate to employ every 
power, the use of which is authorized by the laws of warfare, to put a speedy 
and perpetual end to the rebellion ; and the more emphatically this pm-pose was 
declared the more enthusiastic was the applause. 

Another gratifying feature of the meeting was that every allusion to the ne- 
cessity of further enlistments in the Federal army met with a no less enthusiastic 
response, while the living mass that filled the Square told plainly that this city 
has the material for more than its proportion of the additional forces called for. 
No one who saw the meeting of last night and heard the yearnings and the out- 
bursts of its patriotism can for a moment entertain any apprehension that volun- 
teers will be lacking to bear the banner of the Union victoriously to the ex- 
tremest point of its Southern territory. We should have rejoiced greatly could 
the President of the United States have seen and heard what transpired in Union 
Park Square yesterday. He would have received a vivid and indelible impres- 
sion of this truth, that if he will but strike the rebellion heavily, promptly, de- 
cisively, a popular support will go with him that will be irresistible. 

15 



114 

[From the Xeiv-York Times, Jidij \6th.] 

The Voice of the Metropolis. — The great popular demonstration in this 
city, yesterday, was of a spirit and character sufficiently decided and enthusiastic. 
It, with the April demonstration of last year, forms the second of the two largest 
and most influential meetings ever held in New-York. It proclaimed, in unmistak- 
able language and in clear voice, the purpose of the people in regard to the war and 
in support of the Union and the Government. From every stand and by every 
speaker there was but one tone ; and every man present seemed inspired by the 
spirit of the hour. It was that the war begun by traitors must be pushed on till 
treason is extirpated from the whole land ; that the Union which, during the year 
has cost so much blood and treasure, must be battled for while any blood or trea- 
sure is left in the country ; and that, to this end, the legitimate directors of the 
war must be upheld in every effort for its successful prosecution, and impelled 
onward by the people to greater efforts and the most decisive measures. Though 
during the year thousands of the bravest and best of the sons of New-York have 
given their lives for the sacred cause, there were yet thousands more ready to 
meet the ordeal of battle for its support ; and though tens of thousands were 
now on the battle-field in Virginia, there would be no lack of men willing to 
follow them there or anywhere else. They were in favor of the strongest 
measures on the part of the Government ; the most determined vigor on the 
part of commanders ; the most unflinching prosecution of the war. The 
most energetic words were applauded with most vehemence ; the most courage- 
ous expressions met with the warmest response in the people's hearts. Tnere 
was no talk of discouragement, not the shadow of a thought of doubt of ulti- 
mate triumphant success. Recent disasters were acknowledged and felt to be 
but temporary and accidental ; and the long roll of victories that glorify the 
year gave faith that the triumphs of our arms in the future would be none the 
less prouder and decisive. 

There could not have been greater unanimiti/ displayed on the part of all 
classes and parties in New-York. Men of every political antecedent and of 
every soc al grade agreed and fraternized, as they have done in the past. 
There was no thought of any sort of compromise — not a man who dared to 
propose to turn the back toward the enemy. All felt that whatever stood in the 
nation's oathway must be broken through, and that nothing in the South nor in 
the North was so sacred as the Unity of the Republic. On this point the 
voice of the people, as expressed yesterday, was unmistakable. 

The meeting of April, last year, was held the day after our troops had been 
assaulted in Baltimore, and the first blood had been shed in the war. It gave 
an impetus to volunteering and to the National cause throughout the whole 
country ; it gave strength and vigor to the Administration, consolidated the 
sentiment of the city, and was the first unmistakable evidence of a united 
North. The North has remained united throughout the year, and its unity is 
still unbroken ; and to this fact, next to the courage of our army, is owing the 
triumphs of the past over the rebellion. This meeting gives a further expression 
to the same purpose of the North ; and if it does as much to stimulate the 
the country and aid the Government, it will be a success. 

^ New-York now has had its day of talk. The next work in hand is fighttng. 
The people have spoken ; now let them buckle on the armor. There is 
spirit enough, courage enough, faith enough ; let there be no Ijackwardness 
in volunteering. Three hundred thousand troops are needed — needed at once. 
Our gallant army, which marched to the field a year ago, has already done more 
than half the work of crushing the rebellion, and restori g the Union. The 
men required to aid in finishing the other half of the labor must hasten to do 
it, and put the capstone of restoration on the National temple. If the masses 
of the Metropolis act up promptly to the spirit they evinced yesterday, our 
(|U0ta of troops will be in the field before the close of the week. 



115 

[From the New-York Herald, July IC] 

Thk Crisis. — The V'oick of New- York. — No Saorikick too grkat for the 
Union. — The city of New-York, en itiasae, has risen and spoken again for the 
Union. Yesterday, in Union Square, we had a re-enactincnt of the sublime spec- 
tacle of April, 18G1, and a reaffirmation of the same patriotic spirit and deter- 
mination of our loyal citizens — everything lor the Union. 

Our great day of April, a year ago, was the response of New-York city to the 
President's primary call for seventy-five thousand men to maintain " the integrity 
of the Union," violently assailed by a rebellious conspiracy in the bombardment 
of Fort Sumter ; and that indignant ujjrising of New-York rallied the loyal 
North, like the call of a trumpet, to the support of the Tresident. This second 
grand council of our citizens, after fifteen months of war by land and sea, and 
after the contribution by our city and State to our army and navy of not less 
than one hundred and twenty-five thousand men, is in answer to another call of 
the President for reinforcements to our army to the extent of three hundred 
thousand men. Anticipating, too, from the diffusion of this imposing demon- 
stration, such an awakening of our loyal States and people as will meet all the 
demands of this crisis, we devote a large portion of our available space to-day to 
the productions of this grand assemblage, in order to spread them broadcast over 
the land, and to the encouragement of the friends of our great cause and the 
terror of its enemies at home and abroad. 

The address of this meeting and the accompanying resolutions speak authori- 
tatively the voice of our loyal citizens. They stand upon the solid platform of 
President Lincoln — " The integrity of the Union " — its supremacy, and our 
Federal Constitution. They expose the disorganizing and anarchical elements 
of this Southern rebellion with peculiar force — its absurd and hypocritical pre- 
tences, and its demoralizing and destructive tendencies. The address in ques- 
tion, after fully establishing the legal supremacy of the Union and its political 
necessities, condenses the argument into the simple impressive facts that we are 
fighting '' for the integrity of our country, for our national existence, for the 
Christian civilization of our land, for our commerce, our arts, our schools ; for all 
those earthly things which we have been taught most to cherish and respect." 

The war, then, on our part, is to be prosecuted to the extent of our men, 
means and resources, for the suppression of this rebellion ; and against any 
hostile foreign intervention whatever, the Government can count on the unani- 
mous support of our loyal States and people. Such is the spirit of the address 
adopted by the city of New-York at this mass meeting, and the accompanying 
resolutions are equally emphatic in defining our position. The city of New- 
York looks to no alternative but the suppression of this rebellion. She stands 
by our gallant armies in the field ; she is prepared for any sacrifice to reinforce 
and strengthen them ; she approves the wise, just and consistent Union war 
policy of President Lincoln ; she urges the Government to " lose no time in fill- 
ing up our armies and putting the whole sea-coast in a state of complete de- 
fence," and she knows no such word as fail. 

Each of the numerous speakers on the occasion, though differing from the rest 
more or less, supports this paramount idea of the vigorous prosecution of the 
war. We submit our copious reports to the careful attention of our readers : 
and for their more complete information in regard to the late and the present 
position of General McClellan"s army, in this connection, we give them a very 
interesting illustrative map of the field of war around the city of Kichmond. 
New- York city has spoken, and while the country is responding to her cheering 
voice let us proceed to action. Let us set an example in action by a prompt 
contribution of twenty thousand fresh soldiers to our armies in Virginia. That 
luimber we ought to be able to draw from this grand mass meeting in Union 
Square. 



116 

[From the Neu'-York Tribune, Jidtj 16.] 

New-Yokk is Constant. — A year ago last April, our city held what was 
probably tho largest public meeting ever convened in America, to emphasize her 
determination to stand firmly and fully by the Federal Government, in the strug- 
gle just forced upon it by the slaveholding traitors, in devoting her last dollar 
and musket to the maintenance of the Union, and the support of its fairly chosen 
and rightful authorities. That meeting was unequaled in numbers, in unanimity 
and in dauntless resolution. 

Nearly fifteen mouths have since passed, and again our city has mustered her 
tens of thousands to attest anew her devotion to the country and her cause. If the 
first flush of enthusiasm has passed away, it has been succeeded by a graver, and 
sterner, more inflexible resolution. At the former meeting, the hope was still 
cherished that the traitor chiefs would be left to their own devices, and that the 
Southern masses would compel their assent to a speedy and bloodless reunion. 
That hope has been dissipated. Though the original and determined secessionists 
were less than one hundred thousand in number, they have managed to bully or 
awe the great body of the southern whites into subserviency to their treason. 
Only from the despised, oppressed, calumniated human chattels of these rebels, 
has the Union cause any hope of defenders in the States given over to the 
machinations of traitors. 

The meeting of yesterday was a fresh exhibition of the earnestness and 
unanimity wherewith the Union is cherished in the hearts and hopes of our 
citizens. But it was more than this — it was an entreaty, an exhortation to the 
Government to employ every influence, every instrument, every energy, in put- 
ting down the slaveholders' rebellion. 



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